Integrate physical activity into feminist therapy! This book explores the healing use of exercise and sport as a helpful adjunct to therapy from several therapeutic orientations within the feminist context. It looks at the ways that feminist orientations challenge the mind-body dichotomy and explores the benefits of integrating physical activity, exercise, and sport into therapy. From the editors: “The contributors to this book display a diversity of theory and research approaches, including the integration of the exercise/sport sciences and exercise physiology. This volume is unique in that there has been comparatively little written about the use of exercise in therapy even though exercise is a wonderful and useful intervention tool in the treatment of depression, stress, anxiety disorders, and chronic pain. This book illustrates how exercise can be applied to inpatient and outpatient populations, to the neurotic, and to the chronically mentally ill. Exercise can reduce the incidence of chronic diseases, including diabetes and hypertension, as well as address physical problems such as obesity. Exercise can give one a sense of mastery and self-confidence. As our authors suggest, exercise must be tailored to specific issues and client populations and diagnoses, level of functioning, age, overall health, and cultural context must all be taken into account.” Exercise and Sport in Feminist Therapy: Constructing Modalities and Assessing Outcomes examines: the theory supporting the use of physicality to enhance various types of psychotherapy—psychoanalytic, cognitive-behavioral, constructivist, narrative, and organismic/systems practical methods of integrating exercise into varied orientations an exercise program for women with fibromyalgia a way to use exercise to enhance rehabilitation from breast cancer the use of exercise in group therapy for women suffering with chronic mental illness the “tend and befriend” model, which can help clients to meet their exercise program responsibilities

Integrate physical activity into feminist therapy!This book explores the healing use of exercise and sport as a helpful adjunct to therapy from several therapeutic orientations within the feminist context. It looks at the ways that feminist orientations challenge the mind-body dichotomy and explores the benefits of integrating physical activity, exercise, and sport into therapy. From the editors: The contributors to this book display a diversity of theory and research approaches, including the integration of the exercise/sport sciences and exercise physiology. This volume is unique in that there has been comparatively little written about the use of exercise in therapy even though exercise is a wonderful and useful intervention tool in the treatment of depression, stress, anxiety disorders, and chronic pain. This book illustrates how exercise can be applied to inpatient and outpatient populations, to the neurotic, and to the chronically mentally ill. Exercise can reduce the incidence of chronic diseases, including diabetes and hypertension, as well as address physical problems such as obesity. Exercise can give one a sense of mastery and self-confidence. As our authors suggest, exercise must be tailored to specific issues and client populations and diagnoses, level of functioning, age, overall health, and cultural context must all be taken into account. Exercise and Sport in Feminist Therapy: Constructing Modalities and Assessing Outcomes examines: the theory supporting the use of physicality to enhance various types of psychotherapypsychoanalytic, cognitive-behavioral, constructivist, narrative, and organismic/systems practical methods of integrating exercise into varied orientations an exercise program for women with fibromyalgia a way to use exercise to enhance rehabilitation from breast cancer the use of exercise in group therapy for women suffering with chronic mental illness the “tend and befriend” model, which can help clients to meet their exercise program responsibilities

Read Integrating Exercise, Sports, Movement, and Mind: Therapeutic Unity, and you’ll see how exercise and movement are actually the keys to achieving a harmonious equilibrium between thoughts and physical health. This unique collection of writing, a healthy and diverse montage in its own right, mirrors its topic, helping you see how a variegated array of body movements can lead to a healthier, happier mind.A kaleidoscope of theory and application, case study and abstraction, Integrating Exercise, Sports, Movement, and Mind spans the spectrum of relevant issues, including those revolving around gender, class, ethnicity, and family systems, and accomplishes its task through the medium of a wide assortment of activities, including gymnastics, soccer, horseback riding, archery, running, walking, and cycling. Your perspective on body movement and body-mind unity will be deepened as you read about these topics: family system perspectives and youth sports rehabilitation--“patient as athlete” contact Improvisation the concept of “flow” from within a gendered consciousness sport psychology and the coach/athlete/consultant triad clinical sport psychology sport trauma recoveryIt’s a unique but universal relationship--this prism of thoughts and physical locomotion. So open up Integrating Exercise, Sports, Movement, and Mind and let some of the top experts in the field of sport psychology open your mind and show you how to unlock the body’s potential on the athletic field.

Get a unique perspective on the female biracial experience! Biracial Women in Therapy: Between the Rock of Gender and the Hard Place of Race examines how physical appearance, cultural knowledge, and cultural stereotypes affect the experience of mixed-race women in belonging to, and being accepted within, their cultures. This unique book combines empirical research, theoretical papers, and first-person narrative to address issues relevant to providing therapy to biracial women and girls, helping therapists and counselors develop a treatment framework based on sociocultural factors. Researchers, practitioners, and academics provide insight into the biracial reality, taking multiple aspects of clients' lives into account rather than looking for simple hierarchies of well-being based on race. Biracial Women in Therapy is a building block for mental health practitioners in the construction of theory and practice in working with biracial females. The book examines how a biracial women's racial/ethnic identity intersects with her gender and sexual identity to affect her sense of belonging and acceptance, addressing issues of appearance, social class, disability, power and guilt, and dating and marriage. Topics addressed in the book include: the complexities of multiple minority status how ethnic differences affect biracial adolescents issues encountered by biracial women from a sociohistorical context biracial women's attitudes toward counseling stereotypes of marginalization and identity confusion a multicultural feminist approach to counseling and a first-person narrative of one author's racial and sexual identity development Biracial Women in Therapy: Between the Rock of Gender and the Hard Place of Race is a one-of-a-kind resource for counselors, therapists, researchers, and academics seeking insight into unique issues of mixed-race women.

From Menarche to Menopause: The Female Body in Feminist Therapy examines the latest research on the menstrual cycle and women’s reproductive health. This timely volume focuses on women in therapy who are disconnected from—or even repelled by—their own bodies due to cultural attitudes, abuse, trauma, or the natural aging process. Experts in the fields of psychology and women’s health unite to celebrate the physical life stages of women and girls and to offer practical advice for therapists to use when addressing negativity caused by appearance, age, menstrual symptoms, or reproductive concerns. In this book, you will gain new understanding about the effects on a woman’s mental health that transitional life stages can cause, from preadolescence through the childbearing years to menopause. The suggestions in From Menarche to Menopause can help women resist the bombardment of negative messages and misleading information they receive about their bodies and their reproductive concerns. This helpful resource can also assist you in opening new lines of communication between mothers and daughter, women and men, and women and other women. From Menarche to Menopause discusses how to handle topics such as: self-loathing caused by media and cultural messages that affect women’s acceptance of their bodies overcoming a daughter’s reluctance to discuss sensitive topics of bodily maturation, menstruation, and emerging sexual development helping women, men, and couples cope with infertility assisting women in overcoming a disappointing birth experience providing therapeutic care to women and couples who experience perinatal loss addressing perimenopause in midlife women and the concerns, negative attitudes, and uncertainty of this transition This unique book fills the gap in feminist therapy literature with practical advice concerning the functions of women’s bodies that can be used within the therapy context. From Menarche to Menopause includes extensive references and several book reviews to further your research and provide reading and other resources you can recommend to your clients. This practical resource on women’s reproductive health—as it relates to mental health—is an important addition to the bookshelves of feminist psychologists, clinical practitioners, social workers, and health practitioners as well as faculty and students of these disciplines.

This thoughtful collection addresses the issues faced by women with disabilities, examines the social construction of disability, and makes suggestions for the development and modification of culturally relevant therapy to meet the needs of disabled women. Written in an accessible style with a minimum of jargon, this book provides clinical material from the perspectives of psychotherapists, clients, personal assistants, and health administrators. Women with Visible and Invisible Disabilities also highlights the importance of considering age, ethnicity, and sexual orientation in its examination of feminist approaches to assessment, psychotherapy, disability management (coping), and discusses how the Americans with Disabilities Act impacts employment and education for women.

This book analyzes the challenges, benefits, coping strategies, problems, and accomplishments associated with the midlife experience of women. Ten chapters present the state of research (and correct longstanding myths) regarding significant aspects of middle-aged women's lives. The book bridges a major knowledge gap in the feminist-psychology literature. It balances optimism and realism about older women’s lives – and younger women’s futures.