Despite building their own personal paths toward self-determination and having advanced in different aspects of their lives, women continue to look for external validation, always confronting the image of who they “ought to be”. They want their demands and inner voice to be heard, but sometimes they thwart their internal dialogue in pursuit of an ideal and continue to be functional in their duties.
Postponing the possibility of addressing and talking about their problems has had consequences in their physical and mental health.
Source: Study on Women: lights and shadow (2023).Conducted simultaneously in Colombia, Chile, Bolivia, Peru and Paraguay.
This struggle between external validation and the inner voice, also has an impact on the openness to talk to others about their mental health: only 3 out of 10 women consider it important to talk about their mental health and emotions with friends or family members. Only 17.5% consider it important to talk about their mental health with people they don´t know and are experts on the subject.
In Latin America, women seek spaces of self-care to dispel the burdens of reality and work, in search of balance.
Source: Study on Women: lights and shadow (2023). Conducted simultaneously in Colombia, Chile, Bolivia, Peru y Paraguay.
It is important to reevaluate the roles that family, press, society, public and private institutions play in this extreme situation for many women with respect to their health.
What can brands, even the industry in general do toward this problem?
The pursuit of empowerment and the ideal of perfection should not continue to be the only objective for women, because they generate pressures that affect their health directly. It is time to reevaluate this discourse and explore imperfections, validate mistakes and revise ideals of fame and success.
Change begins by understanding the role that brands play in accompanying women in this journey toward real equilibrium, not one that is illusory and precarious.
How to instill confidence in women and bring forward issues of mental illness so that the support networks really work?
If you would like more information about this study, please contact mujereslatam@provokersite.com
