Critical Psychophysical Passages In The Life Of A Woman

After the birth of my second son some 11 years ago, I was painfully torn by the timing of my reentry to work-my wish to return to a prestigious and stimulating position as chief psychologist of a large agency, or my equally powerful wish to enjoy fully my beautiful new son's infancy, undivided and untorn. At the time I had a dream that my body was cut in half at the waist-my head leaned to the books neatly contained on the library shelves; my belly went to the crib, all sweet-smelling and soft. Not having had the opportunity to be "un divided" with my first son (now 17 years old), I chose to resign my agency position and stay home as long as I wished and then develop my private practice. It was a decision that at the time entailed much loss-cerebral, collegial, social, pres tigious-and generated some self-doubt, but in retrospect it is not regretted and was perhaps wise. This son's infancy will always be remembered as a time in which I experienced mothering with ease and grace.

The wish for a child runs deep, as does the desire for parenthood. It is a wish that is essential to the continuance of the human species. It derives its motive power from many interrelated sources: psychobiological, sociological, historical. Yet it is a power that is changing hands. A short decade ago, Louise Brown was born. Prior to this event, human beings had begun biological life deep inside a female body. Louise Brown's birth signaled the beginning of a new era: The door to a new biotechnological world was opened, a world of artificial insemination, in vitro fertilization, surrogacy, embryo transplants, amniocentesis, gender preselection-procedures imagined but never before realized, leading perhaps to the injection of new genetic material into frozen embryos. Indeed, what had been, since Eve, an exclusively female power and prerogative has now been invaded by 20th-century biotechnology. The womb has been replaced, and sperm and egg can now be joined without love and romance. Change brings with it new questions: A complex inquiry has been generated by issues that are psychological, ethical, moral, biological, sociological, and legal. Simultaneously, and not incidentally or accidentally, gender psychology is in transi tion. As we enter an androgynous zone, cultural heroes shift, new couples emerge. Gender roles are redefined, and renegotiated, not without struggle and apprehen sion. We are approaching a new frontier-hopeful, self-conscious, and anxious. The possibilities are endless, as are the problems.

Empowering Mindfulness for Women is centred around a a 5-day intensive mindfulness course attended by eight women from different backgrounds. The reader is invited to imagine they are actively participating in the teaching and learning moments and turning points encountered in teaching and learning mindfulness around themes such as making space for mindfulness, safeguarding mindfulness for women, engendering mindfulness, mindfulness dreaming and a mandala of wisdoms. Evocative accounts of experience bring to life the women’s growing awareness that mindfulness can be both a separate practice and a natural part of life and that it can help them to nurture what they have neglected in themselves by not tapping into the full spectrum of their experience. Each chapter provides useful follow-up activities and questions for individual or group reflection, journaling, sharing and conversation. Empowering Mindfulness for Women is aimed at those who teach mindfulness to women in educational, community or clinical settings and at women who want to learn mindfulness in a manner that positions them as experts in their own learning.

This truly monumental work maps the literature of women's studies, covering thousands of titles and Web sites in 19 subject areas published between 1985 and 1999. Intended as a reference and collection development tool, this bibliography provides a guide for women's studies information for each title along with a detailed, often evaluative review. The annotations summarize each work's content, its importance or contribution to women's studies, and its relationship to other titles on the subject. Core titles and titles that are out of print are noted, and reviews indicate which titles are appropriate as texts or supplemental texts. This definitive guide to the literature of women's studies is a must-purchase for academic libraries that support women's studies programs, and it is a useful addition to any academic or public library that endeavors to represent the field. A team of subject specialists has taken on the immense task of documenting publications in the area of women's studies in the last decades of the 20th century. The result is this truly monumental work, which maps the field, covering thousands of titles and Web sites in 19 subject areas published between 1985 and 1999. Intended as a reference and collection development tool, this bibliography provides a guide for women's studies information for each title along with a detailed, often evaluative review. The annotations summarize each work's content, its importance or contribution to women's studies, and its relationship to other titles on the subject. Most reviews cite and describe similar and contrasting titles, substantially extending the coverage. Core titles and titles that are out of print are noted, and reviews indicate which titles are appropriate as texts or supplemental texts. Taking up where the previous volume by Loeb, Searing, and Stineman left off, this is the definitive guide to the literature of women's studies. It is a must purchase for academic libraries that support women's studies programs; and a welcome addition to any academic or public library that endeavors to represent the field.

Advancing the literature on a critical topic, this important new work illuminates the relationship between the anguish of eating disorder sufferers and the problems of ordinary women. The book covers a wide variety of issues - from ways in which gender may predispose women to eating disorders to the widespread cultural concerns these problems symbolize. Throughout, the psychology of women is reflected in the concepts and methods described; there is an explicit commitment to political and social equality for women; and therapy is reevaluated based on an understanding of the needs of women patients and the potentially differing contributions of male and female therapists. Providing valuable insights into the critical problem of eating disorders, this book is essential reading for clinicians and researchers alike. Also, by examining many of the ways in which women are affected by and respond to society's gender politics, the book may be used as a text in women's studies courses.

"As a psychotherapist and educator of future mental health practitioners, I believe this work fills an important gap in reference books for professionals who care for childbearing women. Since the volume provides invaluable neurobiological research on depression and anxiety, I recommend this work to all health and mental health professionals."--Illness, Crisis and Loss Over the past three years, pregnancy related mood disorders have become the focus of health care advocates and legislators alike with subsequent reflection in nationwide media. Statistics on the prevalence of perinatal mood disorders suggest that up to 20% of women experience diagnosable pregnancy related mood disorders. The growing recognition of these common disorders, coupled with an increasing knowledge base about the dire consequences of untreated maternal depression, has propelled this issue to the fore of national public health priorities. This increasing awareness has also resulted in recent legislative and healthcare initiatives to screen, assess, and treat such disorders. On April 13, 2006, Governor Jon S. Corzine (D -NJ) signed a law requiring all new mothers to be educated and screened for postpartum depression. This law is the first of its kind in the country, but many states and federal advocates are proposing similar laws. The motivation for states and the federal government to adopt education and screening program is high and may soon be a federal mandate. But a major barrier to successful implementation of such programs is the lack of available resources to train healthcare professionals in this specialty. This book offers a major resource for healthcare professionals, mental health professionals, and medical, nursing, psychology, and social work students who will be confronting this problem in their practices. The contributions, by renowned experts, fill a glaring gap in the knowledge professionals need in order to successfully manage maternal mental health.

This book provides a psychoanalytic perspective on female psychology and includes articles with divergent theoretical viewpoints. It is useful for both research and clinical study and may also provide a bridge to scholars, teachers, and clinicians outside of psychoanalysis itself.