From the young Bollywood star Jiah Khan to Hollywood’s heartthrob Marilyn Monroe, depression has destroyed several women. It is like a cancer that slowly and steadily kills one’s love for life and may even lead to suicide. The World Health Organization estimates that the depressive trend is two to three times more in women than in men. Every year, more than 350 million people around the world die of depression. Surprisingly, India tops the list for having the maximum number of depressed people in the world. Debarati Mukherjee speaks to psychologist Mandira Khandve who offers solutions to help Womentalkonline readers to lead a depression-free life.

Infolady – the short form for “information lady” is a revolutionary concept that has provided thousands of Bangladeshi women the much-desired freedom and chance to use modern technologies. The infolady project is one of the winners in the Deutsche Welle Bobs awards for the category, “Global Media Forum Award.”

What is cancer exactly and is it really possible to “beat the disease?” German oncologist Christof von Kalle is convinced that interdisciplinary collaboration by medical specialists will improve treatments for cancer patients. He hopes to simplify studies to speed up the development of new therapies for cancer.

A ‘Kaddu’ in Hindi means a pumpkin, ‘motu’ is a pet name often given to friends who are a little on the heavier side. Abha Mondhe, an editor at the Deutsche Welle, describes her distress, anger and her challenges on the road to reconciliation with her perceived weight problems.

India has abnormally high numbers of maternal mortality

A poor health care system and lack of education is severely crippling India’s struggle in reducing maternal mortality. Resorting to traditional methods might give a hope of rescuing at least some victims.

Hansa, a 22-year-old mother of two, living in Matel village in district Rajkot, Gujarat is yet another victim. Her fate was like thousands of pregnant women in India who die because of poor health care facilities.

“This was her third pregnancy”, relates her husband’s aunt. “Hansa developed some problem in the fifth month of her pregnancy and her husband came to me late in the evening asking me to come to their home.”

She says that Hansa had been bleeding for 4 days and they put her in a ‘Chakda’ (make shift three wheeler) having no

Jannat Bibi has 12 children to look after

Steel coat hangers and opium sticks are the last resort for most women in Pakistan who want to do away with an unwanted pregnancy. Abortions are illegal in the Islamic Republic, affecting several desperate women.

38-year-old Jannat Bibi, a resident of Dawood Shah in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan and a mother of twelve, has finally agreed to visit a government family planning centre in her village after five abortions. Her midwife, Rozina, 54, says she is now an expert in handling her cases, despite ‘hidden fears’ about Jannat Bibi’s health.