Senegalese women holding signs (in French) in opposition of FGC.
“Before you would never even dare to discuss this… It was taboo. Now you have thousands of people coming to abandon it.” (4)
The practice of female genital cutting (also known as female genital mutilation or female circumcision) is considered a rite of passage for girls in communities that have embraced the practice. Often women are not considered marriageable if they do not go through the painful ritual. Prolonged health risks and complications often arise from the practice of FGC. However, this blog will focus on mental health issues that can arise when a woman is cut.
According to the World Health Organization, 100 to 140 million women around the world have been cut. The map below provides some insight into spatial distribution of the practice (1):
Surprisingly, for this practice to be prevalent, there are few studies that have examined the mental health repercussions of such a traumatic experience. One notable study was conducted with Senegalese women in Dakar. The 2005 study assessed both women who were circumcised as well as a cohort of women who were uncut. The uncut women served as a controlled comparison population. The study ultimately found that the women who were subject to genital cutting had a 30% higher prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder and a 48% higher prevalence of other psychiatric disorders. Only around 22% of the circumcised women had no psychiatric diagnosis while 95.8% of women in the control group did not meet the criteria to be diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder. Additionally, the women suffering from PTSD also had higher rates of memory loss problems. (2) Data from a study of pregnant women who were circumcised in Kuwait in 2011 also showed similar prevalence data, notably showing that 30% of pregnant women who were circumcised showed signs of PTSD. Additionally, the study showed that approximately 80% of women in the study had recurrent flashbacks of the cutting. (3)
Although data on support groups and/or mental health facilities that cater to these women is scant, there has been recent news regarding the tradition that reveal some signs of progression. There are many organizations that are working to curb the practice. A New York Times article published last October highlighted the significant progress the organization Tostan has made in ending the practice in Senegal through community based education programs. Tostan associates work with women in these communities to effect social change. By tailoring each community program to the individual village’s needs and cultural beliefs, many women are compelled to take part in this educational program. As evidenced in the NY Times article, many of these Senegalese women are seeing the danger in the practice and the adverse toll it takes on women both physically and mentally. To date, there have been more than 5,000 Senegalese villages that have abandoned the practice (4). To decrease mental health prevalence, organizations like Tostan are addressing the root of the problem.
If you’re interested in learning more about the efforts to end FGC in Senegal, I highly recommend watching the short movie on the NY Times webpage. You can access it below. I’m particularly fond of the work that Tostan is doing and the progress the organization has made toward ending this practice in Senegal. I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to collaborate with them this summer for my honors thesis research.
(1) http://www.who.int/reproductivehealth/topics/fgm/prevalence/en/index.html
(2) Alice Behrendt, Dipl.-Psych.; Steffen Moritz, Ph.D. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Memory Problems After Female Genital Mutilation. Am J Psychiatry 2005;162:1000-1002
(3) Rachana Chibber, Eyad El-saleh, Jihad El harmi. Female circumcision: obstetrical and psychological sequelae continues unabated in the 21st century. Journal of Maternal-Fetal and Neonatal medicine. June 2011
(4) NY Times, October 2011. Senegal Curbs a Bloody Rite for Women and Girls: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/16/world/africa/movement-to-end-genital-cutting-spreads-in-senegal.html?pagewanted=all
2 Comments
You lucky girl having the opportunity to collaborate with them this summer! I was so grateful to read this article because after discussing FGC in class, I felt discouraged that there seemed to be so little research on the potential emotional and psychological side effects. Yet, you managed to dig some up. Thank you for this and your recommendations.
Great post! It seems that mental health problems in the developing world are often ignored, especially in connection with issues, such as FGM, that have severe physical implications. The statistics you shared in your blog show how severe the issue is and the necessity for a mental health intervention. I look forward to reading about work that is being done in this field. Thank you!