Mental health and well-being of women (menarche, perinatal, and menopause)

Abstract

Mental well-being is now an increasingly researched and discussed topic that primarily involves taking care of mental health in a preventive manner and is more of a subjective concept. Mental well-being ensures mental health and measures taken toward it can protect the person's overall health. Discussing and researching this concept is of paramount importance as this will not just safeguard an individual life but the society at large. The lifetime of a woman is multidimensionally unique with a complex interplay of biological, sociocultural, and environmental aspects. This demands a diverse variety of factors required to ensure mental well-being in a woman. In addition to this, these determinants vary on the life stage the woman is in. Factors that influence this well-being are also specific when it comes to an Indian context. This chapter considers and discusses in detail the various aspects of the mental health and well-being of women in the pubertal, perinatal, and menopausal age groups. Determinants are unique to particular age groups of women, and measures to focus on and ensure it will be elaborated on. Finally, recommendations towards policy making are also suggested.