Throughout history, women have faced challenges entering the health professions. This is true of the various branches of medicine, including mental health. Despite these historical barriers, women are now working and thriving in a variety of roles connected to mental health.
In this article, we will explore women’s progress in mental health professions. We discover the backstory of today’s landscape and learn about contemporary developments in the field. We also touch on the critical role of women in mental health professions in promoting multiculturalism. Finally, we discover how you could retrain as a mental health counselor and join this flourishing field.
A brief history of women in mental health professions
The first female to graduate from a medical school in the United States was Elizabeth Blackwell in 1849. Up to this point, women had been denied access to formal medical training, although they had practiced in the field throughout history. Their roles mainly revolved around helping other women through pregnancy and childbirth.
Although women were formally recognized as educated medical practitioners, their roles continued to focus on the care of other women, driven by society’s need to preserve modesty. The areas of practice included treating women detained in mental asylums, mainly for gynecological issues. Here, their role could overlap into helping with their mental health challenges.
In the early twentieth century, mental healthcare began to evolve away from simply treating patients in institutions. The notion that mental healthcare was for everyone began to emerge, reflected by practices such as psychoanalysis, the foundation of many of today’s modalities.
Melanie Klein and Anna Freud are two distinguished names in this field — female mental health experts who did much to progress the profession for women. As the twentieth century progressed, increasing numbers of women entered the profession of psychiatry.
A look at the numbers of new certificates issued by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology from 1950 to 2000 shows the sharp increase in women qualifying. In 1950, only 5% of certificates were issued to women, totaling 16 in number. Some 50 years later, these figures had leapt to 42% and 461 respectively.
Today, the number of female psychiatrists has overtaken that of men. According to the career website Zippia, 55.4% of all psychiatrists are women and 44.6% are men. Meanwhile, 68.6% of mental health counselors are women, and 31.4% are men. This is testament to the hard work and determination of those early female pioneers, who have paved the way for women entering a variety of mental health professions.
Women’s unique perspective on mental health
In today’s health landscape, women are thriving in mental health professions and bringing a unique perspective to their work. This may be informed by how mental health issues affect the female population as a whole.
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) tells us that women are more likely to be affected by mental health issues than men. Statistics show that 27.2% of females compared to 18.1% of males are affected by any mental illness (AMI). This term covers a range of emotional, mental or behavioral disorders.
The incidence of serious mental illness (SMI), disorders that significantly affect or limit one aspect or more of everyday life, is also higher for women. In fact, 7% of females are affected compared to 4% of males.
It should also be noted that rates of depression and anxiety are higher for women from ethnic minorities.
Since these issues are closer to home, it is no wonder that women are drawn to helping their peers understand and manage their mental health conditions. They may also have greater empathy and understanding of mental health issues that are exclusive to women. These include perinatal depression, which can occur during and after pregnancy, in part due to dramatic changes in hormone levels.
These issues include a more serious form of depression after childbirth, postpartum psychosis. This is a mental health emergency, with patients experiencing symptoms such as hallucinations and thoughts of harming themselves or others. Women may also be affected by mental health issues like anxiety and depression linked to changes around their menstrual cycle or menopause.
Circumstances can affect a woman’s mental health. Those who are living with an abusive partner or have experienced sexual violence are more likely to develop disorders such as anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.
It should also be noted that women may also present different symptoms of their mental health disorder compared to men. For example, they are more likely to practice self-harm or develop physical symptoms as a result of their psychological distress. As female mental health professionals may have either lived through these experiences themselves or can empathize with them, they can offer a unique and valuable contribution.
A special interest in the mental and emotional health and wellbeing of women can develop into a rewarding career in the mental health field. We’ll take a look at the variety of roles available in the next section.
Roles in the mental health profession
With their unique outlook on mental health issues, women are well placed to contribute to a variety of branches of their profession, and initiatives and developments within these.
Psychiatrist
As we have already seen, women are making a significant contribution to psychiatry. They are qualifying in greater numbers than ever before and bringing a unique perspective to this field. In this role, they carry out vital work including diagnosing mental health conditions, creating treatment plans, prescribing medicine and delivering therapy.
They may also be involved in innovative projects such as the Perinatal Psychiatry Access Program Model, which supports obstetric professionals to refer women to psychiatric care in response to perinatal mental health issues.
Psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner
Psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioners are advanced practice nurses who work with a significant degree of autonomy to provide care for people with mental health issues. They will have started their career as a registered nurse (RN), moving on to advanced study to learn about mental health conditions and how to care for them.
This is an innovative role, with many of its tasks overlapping with those of a psychiatrist. These may include diagnosing mental health conditions, prescribing medication and providing therapy. Many psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioners work from their own independent practices (depending on state regulations), providing valuable holistic care to their patients.
Mental health counselor
Statistics tell us that more women than ever before are working as mental health counselors. This is a diverse and rewarding role that offers many different specialty areas. Mental health counselors provide support and guidance to help people manage a mental health condition or improve their general emotional wellbeing.
This can include providing therapy to help them understand and manage their behavior, emotions and actions. Their ultimate aim is to help their clients live full, emotionally balanced lives. A mental health counselor may specialize in areas such as substance use disorders, perinatal mental health, eating disorders or family therapy. They may also specialize in providing multicultural counseling services, directed to clients from ethnic minorities and aiming to address health disparities experienced by these groups.
To achieve this, counselors may enroll in training programs to develop their cultural awareness, knowledge and skills so that they may help clients from ethnic minorities achieve emotional wellbeing. This is a much-needed role, since people from ethnic minority communities are more likely to experience health inequalities related to their physical or mental health.
Mental health counselors work in a variety of settings, including private practice, outpatient services and schools and universities, offering a wide variety of workplace options. With plenty of choice when it comes to specialty and setting, a career as a mental health counselor offers many rewards.
Train to be a mental health counselor
It is clear that a career in mental health counseling can make a difference in people’s lives. Working as a mental health counselor allows professionals to offer hands-on help and support to a broad cross-section of society. Moreover, there is plenty of room for innovation and specialization, with many counselors helping defined groups such as ethnic minorities or women navigating the perinatal period.
An ideal way for students to progress in mental health counseling careers is to enroll in further study. An online Master of Arts (MA) in Clinical Mental Health Counseling can be accessed by graduates with degrees in any field. Meanwhile, an Online EdD in Mental Health Counseling offers the highest level of counseling education for those with a master’s in a related field. Both programs are offered by reputable institutions, such as the American International College, which facilitates 100% online coursework while supporting students to fulfill local practical placements. This allows them to also build hands-on experience.
Mental health counselors who have completed a postgraduate degree in mental health counseling will be able to provide valuable care to their patients. The expert knowledge and skills that are learnt through postgraduate programs means that mental health counselors can provide up-to-date techniques and communication skills to provide better treatment to their patients.
The relevant communication skills that are gained through the relevant training enable better communication channels for mental health counselors particularly on tricky topics for example the ones that women can suffer from after giving birth (postnatal distress) and can help alleviate the potential effects on the family as well as the mother baby bond.
The prospects for mental health counselors
Mental health counseling is a rewarding career path. It is also one that is set to be in demand for a long time to come. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that there will be growth of 18% in employment projection in this area between the period 2022 to 2032.
This is good news for anyone considering looking to enhance their job prospects over the long-term by retraining this field. With a plethora of opportunities, specialisms and workplace settings, mental health counseling ticks all the boxes when it comes to choosing a long and fulfilling career.
Help fulfill people’s unique needs
It is clear that women working in mental health professions offer a valuable perspective that can enhance their practice. Mental health counseling is certainly one area where they can help fulfill people’s unique and diverse needs.
It offers plenty of opportunity for practitioners to respond to societal changes and the shifting needs of an increasingly diverse population. It also provides scope for professionals such as counselors to build on the work carried out by their predecessors, strengthening and enhancing their achievements.
Those who would like to become mental health pioneers, offering valuable counseling services to diverse populations, might consider taking further study in this field. Qualifying as a mental health counselor could be surprisingly accessible when one signs up for an online postgraduate degree program. Check out the options provided by the American International College — it is the first step towards a new and fulfilling career!
