womens health workshops
Women’s Health Workshops Women’s Health Workshops are run in the spirit of feminist self–help: reclaiming information and skills to be shared freely.
They include discussion of all aspects of our health – physical, emotional, spiritual, political, environmental and all the ways these inter-relate. WHW acknowledges that patriarchy, sexism, capitalism, racism, ageism, prejudice against differing ability and disability, and all other oppression affects health.
We offer a variety of courses. All of them are FREE/ donation.
Introduction to Using Herbs – looking at some of the history and politics of the use of herbs as well as practical learning: how to make teas, tinctures, infused oils and ointments.
Introduction to Massage – looking at the best ways to do massage on the floor; including resting and stretching as preparation/ for self-awareness, and basic massage ideas.
Introduction to Vision Therapy – a qualified vision therapist passes on ideas and physical practices that will protect the sight you have and potentially restore sight you have lost.
Introduction to Homeopathy – introduction to using homeopathy for common ailments.
Introduction to Reflexology – how to use this therapy for both relaxation and to aid specific health problems.
Introduction to Self – Help Health Care – creates space for discussion and researching solutions to personal health problems as well as providing basic introductions to the menstrual cycle and breast self exam.
Please contact us via A.C.E. to find out the exact dates and locations of these courses. (contact details available at email list section of this website)
In the introduction to her book ‘Natural Healing in Gynecology’ Rina Nissim writes
‘In developing the kind of health care that meets women’s needs, the self-help movement uses a model of health care which differs from that of modern medicine, one which borrows extensively from the approach of natural healing. One difference is in the concepts themselves of illness, health and health care. For modern western medicine, disease is caused by germs, bacteria and viruses, and health care consists of combating enemy microbes with chemicals, and interrupting the course of the disease. The natural healing approach, on the other hand, is a holistic one which recognises the emotional, social and environmental factors in disease, and which treats the person as a whole being. Moreover, symptoms (disease) are regarded as an expression of the body’s attempts to return to a certain equilibrium. Treatment of these symptoms, then, lies in helping the system concerned to do it’s work. For example fasting or eating lightly when you have a fever helps the body by allowing it to focus on ridding itself of toxins already present, and not overburdening it further. Natural Healing is also a more preventative, or health oriented, style of medicine, stressing how one stays in good health – for example through diet – rather than focusing solely on treating each illness as it occurs. Another difference lies in modern western medicine’s profit orientation. In addition to spawning the pharmaceutical industry (not a few of whose products are – although expensive – ineffective if not downright dangerous), this means quality health care is sometimes available only to those who can afford to pay –and pay dearly – for it. In contrast to the passive consumerism encouraged by modern medicine, and the information-for-sale (to be jealously guarded) attitude of modern medical practitioners, self-help seeks to encourage autonomy through information sharing’.
We’re building up a feminist health reference library (housed at ACE), which includes some of the books from the list below.
Reading/ resources
Self-help, Self-exploration
THE NEW OUR BODIES OURSELVES Boston Women’s Health Book Collective (Penguin Books 1989)
HOW TO STAY OUT OF THE GYNECOLOGISTS OFFICE The Federation of Feminist Women’s Health Centers (Peace Press 1981)
NEW VIEW OF A WOMAN’S BODY The Federation of Feminist Women’s Health Centers (Feminist Health Press, first published by Simon and Schuster 1981)
LESBIAN HEALTH GUIDE eds. Regan McClure and Anne Vespry (Queer Press 1994)
HEALTHY AND WISE The essential health handbook for black women ed. Melba Wilson (Virago 1994)
TOUCH ME, TOUCH ME NOT: WOMEN, PLANTS AND HEALING Shodhini Collective (Kali for Women, New Delhi, 1997)
Menstrual Cycle
ISSUES OF BLOOD: The Politics of Menstruation. Sophie Laws (The Macmillan Press Ltd 1990)
THE WISE WOUND Penelope Shuttle and Peter Redgrove (Grove Press 1988)
FEMALE CYCLES Paula Weideger (The Women’s Press 1977)
HER BLOOD IS GOLD Lara Owen (The Aquarian Press 1993)
ONCE A MONTH Katerina Dalton (Fontana 1978)
BALANCING HORMONES NATURALLY Kate Neil (Ion Press 1994)
SEEING RED: The politics of pre-menstrual tension. Sophie Laws, Valerie Hey and Andrea Eagan (Hutchinson 1985)
CHINESE MEDICINE CURES PMS Bob Flaws ed. Sylvia Schroer (Foulsham 1997)
MENOPAUSAL YEARS The wise woman way. Susun Weed (Ash Tree Publishing 1992)
THE MENOPAUSE INDUSTRY A Guide to Medicine’s Discovery of the Mid-Life Woman. Sandra Coney (Penguin Books 1991)
WOMEN OF THE 14TH MOON Writings on the Menopause eds. Dena Taylor and Amber Coverdale Sumrall (The Crossing Press. Freedom, California 1991)
OLDER THAN TIME Allegra Taylor (The Aquarian Press 1993)
Sexuality
THE CLITORAL TRUTH Rebecca Chalker (Seven Stories Press 2000)
THE GOOD VIBRATIONS GUIDE TO SEX Cathy Winks and Anne Semans (Cleiss Press)
FEMALE EJACULATION AND THE G SPOT Deborah Sudahl
HAND IN THE BUSH The fine Art of Vaginal Fisting. Deborah Addington (Greenery Press 1997)
SEX FOR ONE: THE JOY OF SELF-LOVING Betty Dodson
LESBIAN EROTICS ed. Karla Jay (New York University Press 1995)
THE LESBIAN POLYAMORY READER Open relationships, non-monogamy and casual sex. eds. Marcia Munson and Judith Stelboum (The Haworth Press 1999)
LESBIANS TALK SAFER SEX Sue O’Sullivan and Pratibha Parmar (Scarlet Press 1992)
REDEFINING OUR RELATIONSHIPS Guidelines for responsible open relationships. Wendy-O-Matik (Defiant Times Press, Oakland CA 2002)
THAT’S REVOLTING Queer Strategies for Resisting Assimilation ed. Matilda, Aka Matt Bernstein Sycamore (Soft Skull press 2004)
THE NEW HITE REPORT The Revolutionary Report on Female Sexuality Updated. Shere Hite (Hamyln 2000)
HEALING LOVE THROUGH THE TAO Cultivating Female Sexual Energy. Mantak Chia (Universal Tao Publications 1996)
THE HISTORY OF SEXUALITY Vol 1. Michel Foucault (Penguin Books 1976)
PUBLIC SEX The Culture of Radical Sex. Pat Califia (Cleiss Press 1994)
THE COURAGE TO HEAL A guide for women survivors of child sex abuse. Ellen Bass and Laura Davis (Harper and Row Publishers New York 1988)
THE SURVIVORS GUIDE TO SEX How to have an empowered Sex Life after Child Sexual Abuse. Staci Haines (Cleiss press 1999)
Contraception and Abortion
TAKING CHARGE OF YOUR FERTILITY Toni Weschler, MPH (Harper Collins 1995)
CONTRACEPTION: A Practical and Political Guide. Rose Shapiro (Virago 1987)
THE FERTILITY AND CONTRACEPTION BOOK Julia Mosse and Josephine Heaton (Faber and Faber 1990)
FERTILITY Dr Elizabeth Clubb and Jane Knight. (David and Charles 1997)
THE MANUAL OF NATURAL FAMILY PLANNING Dr Anna M Flynn and Melissa Brooks (Thorsons 1996)
NATURAL FERTILITY AWARENESS John and Lucie Davidson (Saffron Walden The C.W. Daniel Company Limited 1994)
A WOMAN’S BOOK OF CHOICES: ABORTION, MENSTRUAL EXTRACTION, RU-486. Rebecca Chalker and Carol Downer (Four Walls, Eight Windows N.Y. 1992)
THE HERBAL ABORTION HANDBOOK Uni M Tiamat (Sage Femme! 1984 from 3445 N. University Suite #126 Peoria. IL 61604 USA)
EVE’S HERBS: A History of Contraception and Abortion in the West. John M. Riddle (Harvard University Press 1997)
CONTRACEPTION AND ABORTION FROM THE ANCIENT WORLD TO THE RENAISSANCE John M. Riddle (Harvard University press 1992)
ABORTION Between Freedom and Necessity. Janet Hadley (Virago 1997)
FROM ABORTION TO REPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM Transforming a movement. ed. Marlene Gerber Fried (Southend Press 1990)
ABORTION WITHOUT APOLOGY A Radical History for the 1990s.Nina Baehr (Southend Press 1990)
ABORTION Loss and renewal in the search for identity. Eva Pattis Zoja (Routledge 1997)
Herbs and Naturopathy
WOMEN’S ENCYCLOPEDIA OF NATURAL MEDICINE Tori Hudson (Keats Publishing LA 1999)
NATURAL HEALNG IN GYNAECOLOGY Rina Nissim (Pandora 1986)
A WOMAN’S BOOK OF HERBS Elisabeth Brooke (The Women’s Press 1992)
HERBAL REMEDIES: A practical guide to making effective remedies in the kitchen. Christopher Hedley and Non Shaw (Parragon 1996)
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF HERBAL MEDICINE Thomas Bartram (Grace Publishers 1995)
HEALING WISE: Wise woman herbal Susun Weed (Ash Tree Publishing 1989)
WISE WOMAN HERBAL FOR THE CHILDBEARING YEAR Susun Weed (Ash Tree A Publishing 1986)
A MODERN HERBAL Mrs. M. Grieve (Tiger Books London 1994 )
HERBS AND AROMATHERAPY FOR THE REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM Jeanne Rose (Frog Ltd Berkeley California 1994)
WOMEN’S HERBS, WOMEN’S HEALTH Christopher Hobbs and Kathi Keville (Botanica Press 1998)
ALLWOMEN ARE HEALERS Diane Stein (The Crossing Press. Freedom. California 1990)
THE WAY OF HERBS Michael Tierra (Pocket Health Books 1998)
HEALING THREADS Traditional Medicines of the Highlands and Islands. Mary Beith (Polygon1995)
AROMATHERAPY AN A-Z Patricia Davis (The C.W Daniel Company Ltd 2000)
HEALING WITH WHOLEFOODS Oriental traditions and modern nutrition. Paul Pitchford. (North Atlantic Books 1993)
THE COMPLETE HOMEOPATHY HANDBOOK Miranda Castro (Papermac 1991)
Movement and Massage
YOGA AND YOU Esther Myers (Shambala Boston 1997)
AWAKENING THE SPINE Vanda Scaravelli (Harper San Fransisco 1991)
BREATH THE ESSENCE OF YOGA Sandra Sabatini (Thorsons 2000)
LUNA YOGA: Vital Fertility and Sexuality. Adelheid Ohlig (Ash Tree Publishing 1994)
ASANA PRANAYAMA MUDRA BANDHA Swami Satyananda Saraswati. (Bihar Yoga Bharati, Mungar, Bihar, India 1997)
THE ART OF CHANGING A new approach to the Alexander Technique. Glen Park (Ashgrove Press Ltd 1993)
THE HANDBOOK OF SELF-HEALING: Your personal program for better health and increased vitality. Meir Schneider and Maureen Larkin with Dror Schneider (Penguin Books 1994)
SELF-MASSAGE The complete 15 minute-a-day massage programme. Jacqueline Young (Thorsons 1997)
THE MASSAGE BOOK George Downing (Penguin Books 1974)
SHIATSU FOR WOMEN Ray Ridolfi and Suzanne Franzen (Thorsons 1996)
THE REFLEXOLOGY HANDBOOK Laura Norman (Piatkus 1988)
Politics, History, General
COMPLAINTS AND DISORDERS: The Sexual Politics of Sickness. Barbara Ehrenreich and Deirdre English (The Feminist Press, NY. 1973)
WITCHES, MIDWIVES AND HEALERS Barbara Ehrenreich and Deirdre English (London, Compendium, 1973).
WITCHCRAZE Anne Llewellyn Barstow (Pandora 1994)
WOMAN AS HEALER Jeanne Achterberg (Rider 1990)
WOMEN’S HEALTH, POLITICS AND POWER: Essays on Sex, Gender, Medicine and Public Health. eds.Fee & Krieger (Baywood, New York, 1994)
ALICE THROUGH THE MICROSCOPE The Power of Science over Women’s Lives. The Brighton Women and Science Group (Virago 1980)
THE WOMEN’S HEALTH MOVEMENT – FEMINIST ALTERNATIVES TO MEDICAL CONTROL Sheryl Burt Ruzek (Praeger, New York, 1978).
WHAT MAKES WOMEN SICK: Gender and the Political Economy of Health. Lesley Doyal ( Rutgers University Press 1995)
THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF HEALTH Lesley Doyal with Imogen Pennell (Pluto Press 1979)
FOR HER OWN GOOD: 150 Years of Experts Advice to Women. Barbara Ehrenreich & Deirdre English (Pluto Press 1979)
WOMEN’S HEALTH: A Spare Rib Reader. ed. Sue O’Sullivan (Pandora 1987)
FEMINIST THEORY AND THE BODY: A Reader. eds. Janet Price and Margrit Shildrick (Routledge 1999)
THINKING THROUGH THE SKIN eds. S.Ahmed, J.Stacey (London and New York Routledge 2001)
FEMINISM AND THE BIOLOGICAL BODY Lynda Birke (Edinburgh University Press 1999)
THE WOMAN IN THE BODY: A Cultural Analysis of Reproduction. Emily Martin (Boston: Beacon Press 1987)
FLEXIBLE BODIES Emily Martin (Beacon Press 1994)
MAKING SEX Body and Gender from the Greeks to Freud. Thomas Laqueur (Cambridge Mass Harvard University Press 1990)
BEYOND THE NATURAL BODY An Archaeology of the Sex Hormones. Nelly Oudshorn (Routledge London New York 1994)
WOMEN AND MADNESS Phyllis Chesler (Four Walls Eight Windows 1997)
WOMEN’S MADNESS Misogyny or mental illness? Jane Ussher (Harvester Wheatsheaf 1991)
THE FEMALE MALADY Elaine Showalter (Virago 1987)
THE POLITICS OF EXPERIENCE R.D. Laing (Penguin 1968)
R.D. LAING AND THE PATHS OF ANTI-PSYCHIATRY Zbigniew Kotowicz (Routledge 1997)
SPK TURN ILLNESS INTO A WEAPON (SPK – self-publisher for illness at the university of Heidelberg 1987, available through AK Distribution)
MAD PRIDE A celebration of mad culture. eds.Ted Curtis, Robert Dellar, Esther Leslie and Ben Watson (Spare Change Books 2000, available through AK Distribution)
SPEAKING OUR MINDS An anthology eds. Jim Reed and Jill Reynolds (The Open University Press 1996)
NAVIGATING THE SPACE BEWETEN BRILLIANCE AND MADNESS. A Reader and Roadmap of Bipolar Worlds. Assembled by the Icarus Project 2004. (c/o Fountain House, Education Unit 42SW. 47th St. NY. NY 10036 www.theicarusproject.net)
IN OUR OWN HANDS A book of self-help therapy. Sheila Ernst and Lucy Goodison (The Womens’ Press 1981)
CHALLENGING CONCEPTIONS: Planning a Family by Self Insemination. Lisa Saffron (Cassell 1994)
IT’S A FAMILY AFFAIR – THE COMPLETE LESBIAN PARENTING HANDBOOK Lisa Saffron (Diva Books 2001)
POLITICS OF THE HEART A Lesbian Parenting Guide. eds. Sandra Pollack and Jean Vaughn (Firebrand 1987)
PREGNANCY AND BIRTH In Support of Autonomy ed. L Fannen (available from Handemedown distro)
OF WOMAN BORN Motherhood as experience and Institution. Adrienne Rich (Virago 1997)
REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS AND WRONGS: The Global Politics of Population Control. Betsy Hartmann (South End Press 1987)
WOMEN AND THE CRISIS IN SEX HORMONES: An Investigation of the Dangerous Uses of Hormones from Birth Control to Menopause and Safe Alternatives. Barbara Seaman and Gideon Seaman (Harvester Press 1978)
WHAT DOCTORS DON”T TELL YOU The truth About the Dangers of Modern Medicine. Lynne McTaggart (Thorsons 1996)
THE CERVICAL SMEAR TEST Dr Anne Szarewski (Optima 1994)
NO MORE HYSTERECTOMIES Vicki Hufnagel (Thorsons 1990)
BREAST CANCER? BREAST HEALTH! The Wise Woman Way. Susan Weed (Ash Tree Publishing 1996)
CANCER SALVES A Botanical Approach to Treatment. Ingrid Naiman (Seventh Ray Press Puolsbo, Washington 1999)
BREAST CANCER: POISONS, PROFITS AND PREVENTION Liane Clorfene-Casten (Common Courage Press 1996)
WHAT YOUR DOCTOR MAY NOT TELL YOU ABOUT BREAST CANCER How Hormone Balance May save Your Life. Dr John Lee (Thorsons 1992)
N’DREA ONE WOMANS’S FIGHT TO DIE HER OWN WAY (Pelagian Press 1998)
WOMEN’S BODIES WOMEN’S WISDOM Dr Christiana Northrup (Pliatkus 1998)
THE WHOLE WOMAN Germaine Greer (Anchor 2000)
CUNT a declaration of independence. Inga Muscio (Seal Press 1998)
THE AUDRE LOURDE COMPENDIUM Audre Lourde (Harper Collins Publishers1988)
WOMEN, RACE AND CLASS Angela Davis (Women’s Press 2001)
AIN’T I A WOMAN Black Women and Feminism. Bell Hooks (South End Press 1981)
FEMINIST THEORY From Margin to Center. Bell Hooks (Southend Press 2000)
THE SANS-PAPIERS The New Movement of Asylum Seekers and Immigrants Without Papers in France. A Woman Draws the First Lessons. Madjiguene Cisse (Crossroads Crossroads women’s Center, PO Box 287, London NW6 5QU)
ANGRY WOMEN eds. Andrea Juno and V. Vale (Research 1991)
QUIET RUMOURS An Anarcha-Feminist Anthology (reprinted and expanded by AK Press)
PATRIARCHY AND ACCUMULATION ON A WORLD SCALE Maria Mies (Zed Books 1998)
THE WOMAN’S ENCYCLOPEDIA OF MYTHS AND SECRETS Barbara Walker (Harper San Francisco 1983)
ON LIES, SECRETS & SILENCE Selected Prose 1966-1978. Adrienne Rich (WW Norton and Company Inc 1979)
WOMAN AND NATURE The Roaring Inside. Susan Griffin (The Woman’s Press 1984)
WOMANWORDS Jane Mills (Virago 1991)
GYN/ECOLOGY Mary Daly (The Women’s Press 1991)
THE GREAT COSMIC MOTHER Rediscovering The Ancient Religion of the Earth. Barbara Mor & Monica Sjoo (Harper Collins)
NEW AGE AND THE ARMAGEDDON Monica Sjoo (Women’s Press)
MOONTIME Johanna Paungger and Thomas Poppe (Saffron Walden The C.W. Daniel Company Ltd 1995)
SOME OF MY BEST FRIENDS ARE NAKED Interviews with 7 erotic dancers. Tim Keefe (Barbary Coast, San Francisco 1993)
FEAR OR FREEDOM A Woman’s Options in Social Survival and Physical Defence. Susan E. Smith (Mother Courage Press 1986)
Zines and Pamphlets
HOTPANTZ. Do It Yourself Gynecology Herbal Remedies. (Hotpantz CP,871, Succ.C Qc, H2L4L6 Canada)
TAKE BACK YOUR LIFE: A Wimmin’s Guide to Alternative Health Care. Alicia non Grata (Profane Existence PO BOX 8722. MN 55408 USA)
VIVA VOCE Some thoughts on Women’s Health and Sexuality. (Available from Handmedown distro)
WOMEN AND ABORTION: The Body as a Battleground. Rosalyn Baxandall (Open Magazine Pamphlet Series. Pamphlet #17. April 1992. Available through AK)
THE PERIOD CONSPIRACY: Who’s Out to Hurt You and How (or before you buy tampons read this) (Chlam Media Press. 2504 Ravencroft Court. VA Beach VA 23454) (also available through Bloodsisters)
RED ALERT Bloodsisters (c/o Elle Corazon, 176 Bernard West, Montreal, Quebec. H2T 2K2 Canada. www.bloodsisters.org)
WIVES TALES (PO BOX 61332 San Diego CA 92138. USA (or through Blood sisters)
ADVENTURES IN MENSTRUATING Chella Quint (Handmedown distro)
CHART YOUR CYCLE Chella Quint (Handmedown distro)
HERBAL ABORTION A woman’s DIY Guide (Handmedown Distro)
JANE Documents from Chicago’s Clandestine Abortion Services 1968-73. (Firestarter Press available from Handmedown distro)
Mine 2 – Anthology of Abortion Stories. Meredith (Handemedown distro)
MENSTRUAL TABOOS Matriarchy Study Group (Flat 6, 15 Guilford St. London WC1. 1970s?)
WOMEN AND THE SPECTACLE Carol Ehrlich (Spectacular Times 1981)
SEXYOUALITY Challenging the culture of non-monogamy. (The Godhaven Collective available from Handmedown distro)
Articles
Pre menstrual syndrome (PMS) examined through a feminist lens
Esther Rome in CULTURE, SOCIETY AND MENSTRUATION Virginia Olesen and Nancy Frugate Woods
Reclaiming reproductive control- A feminist approach to fertility consciousness
Susan Bell, Paula Garbarino, Jeanne Hubbech, Adrienne Ingrum, Lyn Koehnline and Jill Wolhandler in SCIENCE FOR THE PEOPLE
Lunaception: Losing control to find balance Louise Lacey in Conscious Conception Jeannine
Parvati Baker, Frederick Baker, Tamara Slayton.
Websites
E-mail groups
Other resources
SPECULUMS Bulk (boxes of 25 with or without ratchets) from Oncall medical: 01395 270 530 or SIMS Portex: 01923 246 434
THE MENSTRUAL CUP/MOONCUP Mooncup c/o Su Hardy, 125 Mansfield Road, Brighton, BN2 5ES. UK Tel. 01273 673 845 or www.mooncup.co.uk
MENSTRUAL CHARTS from Wellwomen Information, 6 West Street, Old Market, St. Philips, Bristol BS2 OBH. UK. Tel. 01272 413 311
MENSTRUAL PADS from Bloodsisters c/o Elle Corazon, 176 Bernard West.
Montreal, Quebec H2T 2K2 Canada.
The National Association of Natural Family Planning Teachers
Birmingham Maternity Hospital, Queen Elizabeth Medical Center, Edgbaston,
Birmingham, B15 2TG. UK. Tel. 0121 472 1377 x4219
Women’s Health Workshops. c/o ACE 17 West Montgomery Place.
Edinburgh EH7 6BS www.autonomous.org
Handmedown Distribution. Brighton Women’s Health Collective.
c/o 6 Tilbury Place. Brighton, BN2 OGY.
AK Distribution www.akuk.com
