Women’s Reproductive and Sexual Health

This book offers a groundbreaking exploration of women’s health through a feminist lens, challenging the status quo for both clinicians and medical providers, highlighting the critical need for a more inclusive and empathetic approach to clinical practice and mental health research.

Addressing a spectrum of health concerns--from prevalent issues such as heart disease, cancer, and stroke as leading causes of death for women to conditions uniquely affecting biological women such as pregnancy, menopause, miscarriage, abortion, polycystic ovary syndrome and endometriosis--the chapters in this volume examine how these challenges intersect with gendered experiences. It critically assesses the gaps in current healthcare practices, including the often-overlooked impact on couples and families, and exposes the disparities faced by transgender women, non-binary, and gender non-conforming individuals. By incorporating the latest literature and research on reproductive and sexual health, this volume challenges traditional paradigms and gives voice to experiences that are often silenced.

This book will serve as a crucial resource for students, clinicians, researchers, and advocates committed to advancing women’s health through a more equitable and intersectional framework.

The chapters in this book were originally published in the Journal of Feminist Family Therapy.

Kristina S. Brown, PhD, LMFT, is Professor and the Chair of the Couple and Family Therapy at Adler University. She is the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Feminist Family Therapy and Editor of the new AAMFT Systemic Ethics Textbook. Dr Brown is a feminist qualitative researcher with a broad focus on the experiences of women across identities as represented in her scholarly work. She lives in her ＂empty nest＂ in the Chicago Loop with her husband of 30 years and their two polydactyl cats, Cameron and Ferris.