Women's freedom of movement and participation in psychosocial support groups: qualitative study in northern India.

Mental health access and gender inequality are inseparable in the context of Northern India, and women's mental health cannot be addressed without first addressing underlying gender relations. Community-based mental health programs are an effective tool and can be used to strengthen communities collectively; however, attention towards the gender constraints that restrict women's freedom of movement and their ability to access care is required. To our knowledge, this is the first study to clearly document and analyze the connection between access to community mental health services in South Asia and women's freedom of movement.