This year's theme for SDSU Library's Mental Health Month display is mental health for all. Historically, mental health has been focused on the needs and experiences of White men in the United States and Europe. This display highlights the mental health needs of other populations, including indigenous peoples of the Americas, people in other parts of the world like Japan, women, and LGBTQ+ people.
Additionally, we are discussing self care strategies and the radical history of self care. The concept originally comes from Black and Latina feminist and womanist thought (Wyatt & Ampadu, 2022; Kim & Schalk, 2021). In its original form, activists and writers discussed self care as an act of radical resistance to an often biased healthcare system that failed to treat patients from marginalized groups well. This includes the commonly mentioned healthier diets, physical activity and rest but also caring for your community, remembering to eat, and stopping to take breaks (Harris, 2017).
References
Harris, A. (2017, April 5). A history of self-care. Slate. https://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2017/04/the_history_of_self_care.html
Kim, J. B., & Schalk, S. (2021). Reclaiming the radical politics of self-care: A crip-of-color critique. South Atlantic Quarterly, 120(2), 325-342. https://doi.org/10.1215/00382876-8916074
Wyatt, J. P., & Ampadu, G. G. (2022). Reclaiming self-care: Self-care as a social justice tool for Black wellness. Community Mental Health Journal, 58(2), 213–221. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-021-00884-9
This display was curated by Ashley Wilson, Social Sciences Librarian and Cat Ellis, Health Sciences Librarian.
