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Mental Health in Hispanic/Latina/Latinx Women

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Mental Health for Hispanic Communities

Abstract

The Hispanic/Latino community in the USA is very diverse. It does include people from many different countries and regions of the world. While there is great diversity within this community, there are some shared cultural factors that connect people regardless of heritage or national origin. A large portion of this community speaks the Spanish language. There is also a shared connection of religious affiliations, strong family bonds, connections to extended networks, and a resilient approach to life and work. Unfortunately, in this community, mental health problems often are not spoken about. There is a stigma attached to it. That’s especially true for Latinas. Health inequalities are heightened among Hispanic women, mostly related to social determinants such as unfair paid labor, schooling, and violence. Longitudinal analyses of changes in racial and gender inequality during the last four decades have found important differences in median income by race/ethnicity among those aged 25 to 64 years. Lower educational attainment among Hispanic women has worsened over time, from 11% to 22% in the last 20 years. Latinas tend to be more vulnerable to abuse and mistreatment; may suffer lower self-esteem and higher intimate partner violence, with differential rates by country of origin. In addition, Latina teens experienced high levels of stress and conflict with their parents due to differences in upbringing, which plays a pivotal role in Hispanic teenage girls’ suicide attempts. The terms Latino, Latina, Latinx, and Hispanic women are used interchangeably in this chapter. We review mental health in Hispanics/Latina/Latinx women, focus in the most prevalent psychiatric conditions, analyze the main risk factors, and provide practical insights for clinicians.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Hospital de Sogamoso, Sogamoso, Boyaca, Colombia

    Wilma I. Castilla-Puentes

  2. WARMI Mental Health, Collaborative Mental Health Network, Boyaca, Colombia

    Wilma I. Castilla-Puentes & Sandra Castilla-Puentes

  3. Janssen Research & Development LLC, Titusville, NJ, USA

    Ruby Castilla-Puentes

  4. Center for Clinical and Translational Science and Training, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, USA

    Ruby Castilla-Puentes

  5. WARMI Mental Health, Collaborative Mental Health Network, Cincinnati, OH, USA

    Ruby Castilla-Puentes

  6. Hospital Regional de Duitama, Duitama, Boyaca, Colombia

    Sandra Castilla-Puentes

Authors
  1. Wilma I. Castilla-Puentes
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  2. Ruby Castilla-Puentes
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Clinical and Translational Science and Training, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, USA

    Ruby Castilla-Puentes

  2. Cleveland Clinic, Lerner College of Medicine, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Tatiana Falcone

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Castilla-Puentes, W.I., Castilla-Puentes, R., Castilla-Puentes, S. (2022). Mental Health in Hispanic/Latina/Latinx Women. In: Castilla-Puentes, R., Falcone, T. (eds) Mental Health for Hispanic Communities. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-13195-0_14

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-13195-0_14

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-13194-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-13195-0

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