Nursing professor explores women’s mental health in special issue
Clinical associate professor Shannon Simonovich is the lead guest editor on a special issue of the Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic and Neonatal Nursing, titled “Women’s Mental Health Across the Life Course.” The journal is the flagship publication of the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses.
This issue, which contains 13 publications including research articles, editorials, columns and reviews, was published online in February with open access. Simonovich’s co-guest editors include Kelly McGlothen-Bell of UT Health San Antonio and Beverly Rossman from Rush University College of Nursing.
“To me, as a scientist, mental health is just like any other vital sign in that it’s a key indicator of overall health,” Simonovich said. “If you’re a woman with depression, you’re more likely to have adverse birth outcomes during pregnancy and develop cardiovascular disease as you age. It’s understandable: If you’re not feeling well emotionally, how can you be your healthiest self?”
Simonovich said there is often a focus on women’s mental health during and after pregnancy, but depression, anxiety, PTSD and other mental-health conditions are sometimes episodic and can affect women at critical points across the lifespan, from adolescence to menopause and beyond.
“The goal was to illustrate how mental health conditions are not unique to the perinatal period and that these conditions are heterogeneous and complex,” Simonovich and her co-guest editors wrote in the editorial. “No matter the specifics, the promotion of optimal mental health for all women across the life course is the essential work of nurses and health care professionals in obstetrics, gynecology and neonatal specialty areas.”
Simonovich said the special issue features articles that both describe the experiences of women across the life course and also provide solutions. This issue also explores how lifetime discrimination, stress and stigma affect the mental health of women nationwide.
