Niswa Association, Inc.

We envision an American Muslim community of women and families who are leading healthy and productive lives. We believe that all individuals have the capacity to lead self-actualizing, positive lives, but may need help sometimes. 

[niswainc-blog]

Cinema therapy can have real benefits on mental health.

Watching movies to reduce stress and help our mental health? We’d try it! 

[niswainc-blog]

Don't Treat Religious Women As Second-Class Feminists

While mainstream feminism seems desperate to have in its fold a 19-year-old reality television star who is famous in no small part because her older sister's sex tape went viral, mainstream feminism rejects empowered women of faith.

These two things aren’t mutually exclusive!

[united-nations-deactivated20190]

As a result of the Millennium Development Goals, #mdgs, youth literacy rate has improved globally.

See why #action2015 is crucial www.un.org/action2015

[educated-hebrew]

Any culture that devalues women and sees violence to them as acceptable spawns a Rape Culture. Rape is contributed to by a blend of different factors. Cultural ideas about entitlement to sex, what real manhood is and negative views of women all fuel rape. In relationships, women have long been viewed as the property of men, and as having lost the right to control over their own bodies. Cultural conditions do not absolve a perpetrator of responsibility, but they do contribute to a mindset which can lead to seeing sexual violence as acceptable. The poet Ogden Nash wrote ‘Seduction is for sissies. A real man wants his rape’. Unfortunately, the idea of rape as the act of “real” manhood" is deeply entrenched in the minds of many men. Rapists who stand up in court and say “But she led me on, your honour” happily subscribe to myths because it is in their interest to do so. Partner rapists may subscribe to any of the following myths (6): Entitlement to sex whenever he wants it I own my woman and can do what I want with her She owes me sex It’s her duty to submit A real man doesn’t take no for an answer It’s okay if he doesn’t beat you Women really want to be taken by force If you didn’t want it, you should have tried harder to stop him No means yes It’s not rape if it’s his partner Sexual force and coercion are normal parts of a relationship Women have to be either saints or whores - when they’re whores, they deserve what they get Rape is lovemaking HOW PARTNER RAPISTS EVADE RESPONSIBILITY You may be very confused if your partner engaged in the following behaviours. These are common ways for evading responsibility (7) Denial: Acting as if nothing out of the ordinary happened, baldly stating that it didn’t happen, calling you crazy for saying that it did, saying he doesn’t remember. Rationalization: “You must have wanted it” “You could have stopped me,” “A husband is entitled to it”; rationalization is also blaming you: “ If you gave me more sex…” “You are a cocktease” Minimization I didn’t really hurt you" “You’re making a fuss about nothing” “I just wanted to make love to you.” Claiming Loss of Control: “I was too turned on to stop”, “You make me so angry”!

[niswainc-blog]

How American Gun Culture Impacts Mental Illness

Mental health experts say features of modern American society — from the media to the availability of guns — may make psychotic people more likely to commit violence.

[niswainc-blog]

Not just for Muslims but it certainly can help with learning to making yourself heard in a positive and respectful way. 

[psychhealth]

Nearly 6,000 British school children are to take part in a major trial designed to assess whether mindfulness training for teenagers can improve their mental health.

[niswainc-blog]

Even Mild Mental Health Problems In Children Can Cause Trouble Later

Children with mental health issues are more likely to struggle with jobs, family and social life as adults. And that's true even for children whose problems aren't severe enough to be diagnosed.

Talk to the young people in your life today about expressing feelings positively, to not disregard feelings and emotion, find positive ways to cope with negativity, and to understand overall that even having bad feelings are good for us too. 

[kslsrsc]

In today’s shelfie, these old editions of a chemistry handbook make an unintentional rainbow!

[niswainc-blog]

In Pursuit of Female Islamic Scholarship

“Knowledge without action is insanity, and action without knowledge has no reality.” Those of you who notice problems in our community, be it gender inequality, the lack of good role models, or the...

[niswainc-blog]

Mental Health 101

Psychological Education as a Path to Smarter College Students

Important to find a mental health counselor at your college or university. This is a challenging problem but remember that help is there and it can make all the difference! 

[gnczhanna]

Please pray for the island of Puerto Rico, my people are experiencing one of the biggest droughts they ever have had and the government is alternating 3 days without water allowance and 1 day with water (that means no showers, no tap water, no laundry, no anything). The US gov’t is doing pretty much nothing to help and the US news is of course not talking about it. 

[nostalgiacloud]

They sure are making sure tourists get that water though. This is terrible!! Please share!

[psychhealth]

This report uses nationally representative data on frequency of mental health symptoms and related treatment utilization to compare men of color (i.e., non-Hispanic black and Hispanic men) with non-Hispanic white men. It also explores whether racial and ethnic disparities differ by age, health insurance coverage status, and income.

Non-Hispanic black and Hispanic men were less likely than non-Hispanic white men to report having daily feelings of anxiety or depression, and this disparity was due to significant differences among younger men aged 18–44. This finding may seem to contradict other research revealing that rates of serious psychological distress (6) and depressive symptoms (7) are higher among Hispanic and non-Hispanic black persons than among non-Hispanic white persons. However, the findings in this report are based on a different measure of mental health symptoms (reported daily feelings) that considers frequency but not intensity of feelings. The findings in this report are also based on a different population (men only).

Younger men of color who reported daily feelings of anxiety or depression were less likely than their non-Hispanic white peers to take medication or talk to a mental health professional. This difference in treatment use was not observed for older men.  Among the younger men, the racial and ethnic difference in treatment use was observed regardless of income.

Racial and ethnic differences in men’s mental health treatment use appear to be driven by differences among younger uninsured men. The survey data cannot be used to determine if young men of color without health insurance, relative to young uninsured non-Hispanic white men, perceive less need for treatment, are less motivated to seek treatment, experience additional non-cost barriers when attempting to access mental health treatments, or more quickly stop using treatments that do not seem to be working. In focus groups, young men of color were particularly likely to say that mental illness and treatment seeking are signs of weakness and can bring shame and embarrassment to one’s self and family (8). Yet having health insurance coverage appeared to reduce the impact of such barriers; the observed racial and ethnic difference in treatment use was significantly smaller for younger insured men. Recent expansions of health insurance coverage may consequently reduce these racial and ethnic disparities.  

[niswainc-blog]

Three Musts for Every Muslim College Student This Year

A young Muslim graduates high school and goes off to college, and then discovers that she is indeed a Muslim and begins practicing Islam through self-motivation. Sound familiar? Did it happen to yo...

[niswainc-blog]

24 Books That Are Straightforward About Mental Illness

Because sometimes it's hard to explain or understand on your own.

buzzfeed is recommending some pretty eye opening literature. Books can inspire us to do some amazing things. Hopefully, a good book can lead us to learn and to really empathize with someone else or to at least understand ourselves. 

[niswainc-blog]

Abuse of Women with Disabilities

How and why women with disabilities are more likely to be abused

The Trauma Report and Psychology Today rightfully brought the issue to attention. Please assist the disabled! 

[wrcnorman]

I Didn’t Know My Boyfriend Was Abusive Since He Never Hit Me

Abuse from a partner doesn't have to be physical. This author's account of emotional abuse is chilling.

Sometimes verbal/emotional abuse can be even worse than physical violence for some.  Listen. Believe. Support. Refer.