Women and mental health: A feminist review

This article contextualizes some of the more specifically focused articles in this Special Issue of 'Women and Mental Health' by reviewing general his torical and political currents structuring contemporary discussions around questions of models, treatment and provision for women within British menta l health services. We highlight some particularities of the current British context (in relation to other national scenes) in terms of the forms and e xpressions of feminist activity around mental or emotional distress. While not absolute mirrors of each other, resonances between general trends in fe minist debates and organizational forms within feminist mental health work give rise to a wide spectrum of sites of intervention. We discuss some of t he conditions that gave rise to these forms of (visible) feminist intervent ion within mental health service provision, focusing particularly on women' s counselling and therapy services, and we offer an analysis of the range a nd conceptual tensions within which such interventions may be situated, inc luding contested perspectives on power and empowerment. We also consider wa ys in which women's political activity around mental health issues is likel y not to be noticed as such, given women's prototypical positions as patien ts and practitioners. We end by identifying what we see as current challeng es for feminist activism around distress and its links with the conditions of women's lives and oppression more generally, not only as instances of mo re general tensions and challenges within contemporary feminisms, but also as offering an arena of opportunity for broader alliance and coalition-buil ding.