Women feel the stress

Gender-specific study looks at ‘mental loads’

TASMANIAN women with mental health issues are more likely to be struggling with stress than their mainland counterparts, according to the first gender-specific national study into women’s health.

The study, commissioned by the charity Liptember, found the “mental load” for women was vastly different to men’s.

The charity said the survey, which polled 4000 people, showed there was a “gender gap”, with less than half of those reporting a mental health problem seeking treatment for it.

It also found that biological, socio-economic, political and cultural factors associated with being female have a significant impact on mental health.

“There has been a persistent blind spot when it comes to women’s mental health, and the lack of research, programs and support focused on women’s mental health is something we’re committed to improving,” Liptember Foundation CEO and founder Luke Morris said.

The survey found about seven in 10 Australian women currently suffer from stress, 44 per cent have anxiety, while 38 per cent are battling body image issues. Significantly, 74 per cent of Tasmanian women with mental health issues said they struggled with stress – more than women living in other parts of the country.

Of those with mental health issues, 43 per cent of Tasmanian women have anxiety, 47 per cent have body image issues, a quarter have at least one affective mood disorder, and 24 per cent are in psychological distress.

A quarter have a severe mental health disorder, 14 per cent are experiencing a moderate disorder, and 21 per cent have a mild disorder.

Just 41 per cent of respondents said they were well.

Professor of Psychology Navjot Bhullar said as a result of gender-related differences, women can experience certain mental health conditions at higher rates than men.

Meanwhile, a separate door-to-door survey has found that 44 per cent of Burnie residents wanted to seek mental health assistance in the past 12 months, but almost half were unable to access the help they needed.

The Assisting Communities Through Direct Connection (ACDC) Project spoke to people in more than 500 Burnie households between December 2021 and March 2022, with 138 completing a survey on their mental health experiences.

The report found that the chief reasons Burnie residents didn’t seek the help they needed were fear, embarrassment or shame (62 per cent), not knowing where to get help (42 per cent), or preferring to selfmanage their condition (41 per cent).