Reasons To Celebrate National Women's Health Week This Year

Disclaimer: Please note that this article refers to "women" as any person that identifies as one. Some topics within the article will focus on biological features unique to those assigned females at birth (AFAB) who may or may not identify as women. A few issues specific to transgender and non-binary women-aligned individuals may also be mentioned.  

National Women's Health Week begins on Mother's Day each year and encourages women and girls to improve their mental and physical health through exercise, health checkups, and community action. The Office On Women's Health also recommends staying active, nourishing the body with healthy eating, finding healthy ways to manage stress, and practicing self-care.  

National Women's Health Week (NWHW) was founded by the US Department of Health And Human Services' Office on Women's Health (OWH). It can be a significant week because it teaches the importance of understanding and partaking in preventative healthcare, healthy daily decisions, mental health efforts, and research on conditions that impact women worldwide. Each year, the week begins on Mother's Day and lasts seven days. 

The CDC also states that two out of every three caregivers in the US are women and that Women's Health Week can help raise awareness that women caregivers often have a greater risk for poor physical and mental health overall. These statistics can be valuable in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, which brought a higher need for caregivers throughout the country. 

This year, you may want to celebrate Women's Health Week to encourage women and individuals to reach out for physical and mental healthcare, promote healthy behaviors, and connect with other women. 

Each year, women's healthcare advancements may increase and allow them to get more health resources. Studies show that women's healthcare may have once been considered a niche market, despite 80% of consumers being women. However, recent work to improve the industry has been taking place. For example, the Penn Medicine Chester County Hospital published research showing the average women's life expectancy has increased from 78 to 81 in the US in the past 30 years. 

The hospital also found that the smoking rate has been reduced from 28% to 16% in women, and the number of women who die from heart disease has gone from one in three to one in four. Additionally, in 2022 there were many new studies done on breast cancer and its impact, including many new treatments and clinical trials that may be approved in the future. 

Celebrating Women's Health Week can also celebrate the wins women and researchers have made in targeting specific health issues and women's concerns in the past 30 years. Since daily decisions influence health and wellness, more people are looking at how women can find health resources. Although there can be issues to pay attention to, optimism can be a way to feel gratitude for what has already changed and what may be to come. 

In addition to healthcare advancements for women, mental health may continue to be a priority for researchers. Shelly F. Greenfield, MD, in an article for McLean Medical School, stated that women were not previously included in mental health research until the 1990s despite the myriad of mental health challenges that affect women worldwide. A few studies prioritized through the McLean school program included personality disorder treatment for women, substance use research in women, eating disorder support options, dissociation connections with trauma, and several others. 

If you are struggling with substance use, contact the SAMHSA National Helpline at (800) 662-4357 to receive support and resources. Support is available 24/7.

Studies show that for 4000 years, hysteria was considered a mental health condition and disease attributed only to women. For these 4000 years, mental health research and education were not focused on women. For example, the gynecological system and maternal mortality was not studied until the 16th century. Women's mental health issues were not fully considered and studied until the late 20th century. 

In modern psychology, women can get treatments for an array of mental health conditions and some specific to parents, such as post-partum depression. Women's Health Week can bring awareness to these advancements and the future advancements that may be made in the mental health field toward supporting mental health care for women. 

Many historical women made strides in physical and mental healthcare, women's rights, and world outreach efforts. A few of these women include: 

• Rosa Parks: A Black woman who refused to give up her seat to a white passenger in protest of segregation and was the inspiration for many women's movements.
• Maya Angelou: An author, dancer, and actress who wrote many prolific books and was a voice in the Civil Rights Movement. 
• Florence Nightingale: A nurse who risked her life to offer life-saving care to soldiers during the Crimean War and helped to make hospitals cleaner. 
• Elizabeth Blackwell: The first woman to receive a Doctor of Medicine degree (MD). She also established the New York Infirmary for Women and Children. 
• Sally Ride: Sally Ride was the first American woman to travel to space and one of NASA's first woman astronauts. 
• Margaret Hamilton: Margaret was a computer scientist who led the efforts to develop the program code to send Americans to the moon in 1969. 

Womanhood can be a subjective experience, and each woman may have a different idea of what it means to be one. Daily decisions influence how each person lives. During Women's Health Week, consider why you feel proud to be a woman and how you feel women contribute positively to society. You might partake in the following activities during this week: 

• Thanking women in your life for their impact
• Going on a women's retreat
• Promoting women's health through healthy eating, sleep hygiene, and checkups like blood pressure screenings and healthy weight monitoring
• Connecting with your spirituality or religion on what it means to be a woman 
• Celebrating the advancements of women in STEM careers
• Challenging stereotypes and gender bias 
• Learning about the many cultures worldwide and how women contribute to them 

There are many ways you can celebrate Women's Health Week this year, including the following. 

Look for events in your area to celebrate National Women's Health Week. Reach out to local women's health clinics, gyms, and women's health centers for information on how you can volunteer, participate, or offer support in encouraging women. 

Whether you are a woman or not, you may choose to celebrate this day by thanking the women in your life for their contributions, impact, and accomplishments. For example, as the first day of Women's Health Week is on Mother's Day, you could reach out to your mother, grandmother, or another woman who identifies as a mother or caregiver and offer them a care package, gift, or words of kindness. 

Get regular medical exams

If you were assigned female at birth or identify as a woman, you might benefit from a health exam and other preventive health screenings. Screenings help with disease control and prevention, and daily decisions influence your health. For example, you might choose to get regular checkups, regular pap smears, and a whole health exam when you visit your healthcare provider. 

Cancer screening 

Certain cancers have screening tests that you can take to ensure your health and monitor risk factors. One of those tests is a pap smear, a screening test for cervical cancer involving the vagina insertion of a swab and a group of cervical tissue through a speculum. The Office On Women's Health recommends getting a pap test every few years if you are 21 to 65 and have a cervix, as you may be at a higher risk. Your pap test might involve an HPV test as well, which is a group of cells on the cervix using a soft brush. 

To screen for breast cancer, you may be referred by your primary care doctor to an imaging laboratory where you might complete a mammogram scan. A mammogram is a procedure where you stand in front of an X-ray machine and place your breast tissue on a metal plate. The X-ray machine will then be pressed against your breast and take photos of the inner structure. There may be minor pressure or pain. Afterward, your doctor will let you know if there are any early signs of breast cancer. 

If you are concerned about cancer risk, please get in touch with your whole health doctor for further testing and guidance. 

Outside of cancer risk, those with a gynecological reproductive system may experience other health conditions and partake in routine reproductive health examinations and testing to ensure health. For example, individuals with a vagina can contract sexually transmitted infections (STIs) that may appear differently than in those without. 

Routine STI testing can be beneficial in ensuring health. The CDC recommends that all sexually active individuals get tested at least once for HIV and yearly for gonorrhea and chlamydia. If you have been exposed to someone who may have HIV, go to an urgent care clinic or healthcare provider like Planned Parenthood to take a dose of Prep, a medication that may prevent the contraction of the condition if taken after exposure. If you are pregnant, get tested for syphilis, HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C. 

Women may also see a gynecologist for a checkup once a year. Other conditions that may impact them can include: 

• Ovarian cysts 
• Vaginal cysts 
• Endometriosis
• Painful or heavy periods
• Infertility
• Menopause
• High blood pressure 

Some individuals with a gynecological system may not have ovaries, fallopian tubes, a uterus, a cervix, or a vagina due to surgery or past health risks. In these cases, speak to your gynecologist about how to care for your unique condition. If you have a constructed vagina due to a gender-affirming surgery or serious health problems, consult your gynecologist to care for your anatomy and ask if there are any health risks unique to your body. 

Practice self-care

Women can also celebrate Women's Health Week by practicing self-care for their well-being and choosing to practice healthy behaviors. A few ways to practice healthy behaviors focused on your whole health could include: 

• Exercising regularly or partaking in some form of physical activity 
• Getting regular checkups  
• Making healthy living a priority through daily decisions based on well-being
• Spending time with those you love
• Playing with your pets
• Taking a hot bath or shower 
• Buying yourself a present that you can afford
• Taking time to yourself if you usually focus on others
• Caring for your hygiene by brushing your teeth, showering, and wearing clean clothing 
• Practicing healthy sleep hygiene
• Mindfulness or meditation
• Practicing yoga
• Making a pact to eat well-balanced meals for better health regularly 
• Spending time with your family 
• Journaling 
• Partaking in your favorite hobby
• Singing or playing an instrument 
• Supporting women in your life 
• Avoiding processed foods, added sugars, and trans fats 
• Avoiding dairy products if you are lactose intolerant 
• Choosing foods high in vitamin D for mental well-being 

See a therapist 

Many women experience mental health conditions, stress, and concerning mental health symptoms. A therapist can be a rewarding, compassionate, and understanding support for women, couples, and girls who seek tips for mental wellness and lifestyle changes. 

Suppose you struggle to find a counselor in your area or aren't sure about the cost of in-person treatment. In that case, you can also consider online therapy, which allows individuals the option of a lower monthly cost and the possibility of phone, video, and live chat sessions with a licensed therapist. Furthermore, one study on internet-based counseling found that 71% of participants found it more effective to talk with a therapist online compared to traditional in-person methods, and they experienced symptom relief throughout and after the study. 

You may find therapists for women through a website like BetterHelp, which offers the option to choose the gender of your therapist, specify if you want to speak to a therapist of color or LGBTQ+ therapist, and choose a time slot that works best for you.