ABSTRACT

This poem offers a creative, artistic and highly readable contribution to the literatures of women's studies and psychology. It explores women's first-person experiences with the mental health establishment. The poem discusses Vested Interests. It will also enlighten those in the helping professions as they extend their services to women in a time of growing need and shrinking resources. These artistic expressions of personal experience will help women understand their own encounters in a new light. They are also instructive and enlightening for any practitioner working with women in a mental health setting. This anthology, in the spirit of Gilman's work, gives voice to today's women so that their own encounters with the mental health establishment can be validating and affirming to others.