Our Bodies, Ourselves : A New Edition for a New Era

by Boston Women's Health Book Collective; Judy Norsigian

• ISBN13: 9780743256117
• ISBN10: 0743256115
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-04-19
• Publisher: Touchstone

Summary

America's best-selling book on all aspects of women's healthWith more than four million copies sold,Our Bodies, Ourselvesistheclassic resource that women of all ages can turn to for information about every aspect of their well-being. Completely revised for the first time in a decade, these pages give women everything they need for making key decisions about their health -- from definitive information from today's leading experts to personal stories from other women just like them. This updated edition ofOur Bodies, Ourselvesincludes the latest on: Nutrition and exercise Relationships, sexuality, and sexual health Complementary health practices Reproductive choices, pregnancy, and childbearing Growing older Medical testing and proceduresTogether with its companion website (www.ourbodiesourselves.org),Our Bodies, Ourselvesis a one-stop resource for women of all generations.Plus: The rearranged food pyramid, a chapter about sexual orientation and gender identity, advice for making safer sex more fun, the latest on breast-feeding, support for women experiencing pregnancy loss, and a section devoted to getting the best care in today's complicated health care system.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. ix
A Letter from Founders of the Boston Women's Health Book Collective	p. xiii
Taking Care of Ourselves	p. 1
Body Image	p. 3
Eating Well	p. 19
Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Mood-Altering Drugs	p. 45
Our Bodies in Motion	p. 57
Complementary Health Practices	p. 67
Emotional Well-Being	p. 82
Environmental and Occupational Health	p. 96
Violence and Abuse	p. 118
Relationships and Sexuality	p. 139
Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation	p. 141
Relationships with Men	p. 154
Relationships with Women	p. 169
Sexuality	p. 186
Sexual Health	p. 225
Sexual Anatomy, Reproduction, and the Menstrual Cycle	p. 227
Safer Sex	p. 261
Sexually Transmitted Infections	p. 272
HIV and AIDS	p. 291
Reproductive Choices	p. 307
Considering Parenting	p. 309
Birth Control	p. 322
Unexpected Pregnancy	p. 381
Abortion	p. 389
Childbearing	p. 417
Pregnancy	p. 419
Childbirth	p. 450
The First Year of Parenting	p. 474
Childbearing Loss	p. 495
Infertility and Assisted Reproduction	p. 506
Growing Older	p. 525
Midlife and Menopause	p. 527
Our Later Years	p. 553
Medical Problems and Procedures	p. 585
Unique to Women	p. 587
Special Concerns for Women	p. 658
Knowledge Is Power	p. 699
Navigating the Health Care System	p. 701
The Politics of Women's Health	p. 719
Organizing for Change	p. 748
Glossary	p. 759
Resources	p. 763
The Production Team for Our Bodies, Ourselves 2005	p. 781
Authorship and Acknowledgments	p. 783
About the Contributors	p. 791
Index	p. 799
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

Introduction

Welcome toOur Bodies, Ourselves,the classic book about women's health and sexuality that is written by women, for women. Since its first newsprint version in 1970,Our Bodies, Ourselveshas been created and revised by women speaking from our own research and experiences about our bodies, health, and medical care.

This edition reflects the work of more than four hundred women -- and quite a few men -- who share both personal stories and health information based on the latest scientific evidence. The result is a newOur Bodies, Ourselves,rewritten for today's realities.

Changing Times, Continuing Need

Much has changed since the late 1960s and early 1970s, when the group that became the Boston Women's Health Book Collective first started to meet. Abortion is now legal (though threatened), and birth control options have increased; the AIDS epidemic has made safer sex a subject of public discussion; and lesbian and gay couples have the right to marry, at least in Massachusetts. Many groups, including an active movement of women with breast cancer, have drawn new attention to environmental factors in disease and to the politics of research funding. More health care providers are women now, and doctors and medical researchers of both sexes tend to be more sensitive to and knowledgeable about women's concerns than doctors of an earlier generation. Information on women's health is widely available.

But the need for a book likeOur Bodies, Ourselvesremains. Too much medical care still focuses on the expensive "solutions" of drugs and surgery, rather than on prevention or management strategies such as good food and exercise, a clean environment, and safe working conditions. Too often, women's life experiences, from childbirth to menopause, are seen as diseases to be treated rather than natural, healthy processes that sometimes have problems. And too many of us still don't have the knowledge and resources to participate effectively in maintaining our health.

Self-help and Beyond

This book offers individual women the tools to take care of ourselves, from eating well and becoming more physically active to learning how to cope better with stress. It provides helpful, clear information about substance abuse, heart disease, eating disorders, and many other conditions that women confront. A new chapter, "Navigating the Health Care System," provides practical advice for getting the best care possible.

YetOur Bodies, Ourselvesis about more than self-help. Many aspects of our health, from workplace safety to sexual violence, are often beyond an individual's control. Therefore, this book addresses the political, economic, and social factors that affect our health and medical care: the industrial plants spewing pollution, the fast-food giants pushing junk food, the pharmaceutical companies unethically promoting drugs, the government dismantling our social safety net. We can change these conditions only by working together, sharing our stories with other women, and advocating for policies and programs that protect the health of our families, our communities, and the world.

Many Women's Voices

Despite some changes, this edition retains one of the distinctive traits ofOur Bodies, Ourselves:the use of real women's voices. These first-person stories, set off in italicized passages throughout the text, have been collected from conversations, letters, and e-mail messages that spanned the globe.

Diverse voices are also embodied in the all-embracing "we" of this book. When the Boston Women's Health Book Collective first wrote about "our bodies," the "we" reflected the white, mostly middle-class, well-educated background of many of its founding members. But as more diverse women have helped revise the book, the "we" has grown to include a greater variety of experiences.

Making Changes Together

No matter who we are, we often need both information and support to make healthy changes. If we are trying to get more exercise, for example, inviting a friend to share a morning walk may make it more fun. Similarly, if we are feeling overwhelmed as new mothers, we may want to join a play group with other families in the neighborhood. The same principle extends to issues beyond our individual well-being: By working together, we can bring about change and improve the health of our communities.

This new edition ofOur Bodies, Ourselvesserves as a first step on such paths, offering information, stories, and resources so that we can take care of ourselves -- and one another.

Heather Stephenson, managing editor

For the Boston Women's Health Book Collective

July 2004, Boston

Copyright © 1984, 1992, 1998, 2005 by the Boston Women¹s Health Book Collective

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Excerpted from Our Bodies, Ourselves: A New Edition for a New Era by Boston Women's Health Book Collective Staff
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.