PREFACE/INTRODUCTION*

By Jane Pincus and Joan Ditzion //

/

EARLIER PREFACES:

I by Vilunya Diskin and Wendy Sanford

II by Wendy Sanford

In 1969, there was practically no women s health ically oriented than 15revious editions, we emphasize

information easily available, and every fact we learned what we as women can do for ourselves and for on~

Was a revelation. Our first publication of Our Bodies, another, and we often discuss nonmedical perspec-

Oursdves helped spark many women to explore the fives and remedies as well as medical ones. The thou-

health issues most important to them. Since then, sands of women who contact us in person, in letters

women throughout this country and the world have and by phone have opened up whole new subjects and

generated such a wealth of information and re- issues for revisions: "I looked in your book for a dis-

sources--research papers, books, health groups and cussion of in vitro fertilization and couldn t find it."

centers, gewsletters and journals--that this time ~You ve got to include the experiences of differently-

around we turned to them for help in rewriting the abled [disabled] women next time." "This is what hap-

book. pened to me when I got PID [pelvic inflammatory dis-

Rewriting has been a challenging, remarkable ex- ease]; tell other women about it so they will be

perience. Every writer (and consultant) ended up forewarned and know how to get the right kind of

working on the book much longer than she ever ex- treatment." "Could you please say more about lesbians

petted to, with immense goodwill and patience, for and medical care?" Such comments in the past have

very little pay. A typical chapter went through at least led to the book becoming denser and longer each time.

three drafts, each commented on and criticized by most This edition is no exception. It was difficult to decide

Collective members and a wide range of outside read- what to cut, especially when every chapter turned out

~rs. Several chapters were themselves written by small to be twice as long as we had room for. To include

groups. Sometimes one person s insight would cause and condense so much information has meant over-

s whole chapter to be rethought. The end result of all simplifying some subjects and shortchanging others.

this work is an almost totally new Our Bodies, Our- (Many authors have written long, annotated bibliog-

sdves, raphies, available from our office upon request.)

This rewrite reflects our Collective s long-time corn- We expanded some of the original sections, such as

mitmeat to keeping the book up to date. Health and UWomen in Motion" and Wiolence Against Women,"

medical information changes quickly; new health into chapters in their own right. Some entirely new

problems come to the fore; legal and political realities chapters are "Health and Healing: Alternatives to

d~t, changing people s access to information and care. Medical Care"; UAlcohol, Mood-Altering Drugs and

Equally i~portant, our own political awareness keeps Smoking ; "Environmental and Occupational Health";

changing: the more we learn, the less we believe that "New Reproductive Technologies." After noting that

the medical system as it is structured today can or in previous editions our discussions of the life cycle

~11 alter to meet our needs. So in this book, less med- always ended with menopause, older women vehe-

mently told us that indeed there is life after meno-

*The following chapters were included in prior editions but pause. Together with them we wrote an all-new chapter

are not in this current edition: "Our Changing Sense of Selves," on growing older. The chapter on international issues

by Joan Ditzion; ~Considering Parenthood,~ by Joan Ditzion. grew out of our q~ respondence and conversations with

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