Women Drug Users, Multiple Vulnerabilities, and Care: An Analysis from a Gender Perspective

Abstract

This article explores the trajectory of drug use and therapeutic pathways of women who are problematic substance users from a gender perspective. Recent specialized literature reports the existence of violence, stigma, differential caregiving responsibilities, and frequent discriminatory institutional practices toward these women, among other phenomena that influence their relationship with drugs. In this regard, the article asks what situations of vulnerability and specific caregiving dynamics as women affect their consumption and treatment. It is based on interviews with ten women who attended religious or spiritual guidance programs in the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area (Argentina) and focuses on three stories, systematizing significant events that serve as turning points in their lives. The analysis identifies sexual and gender-based violence perpetrated by family members and partners, as well as pregnancies, abortions, motherhood, exclusive caregiving responsibilities, and threats of losing custody of their children due to drug use. These factors constitute specific vulnerabilities linked to their gender and are fundamental to understanding both their relationship with drugs and the ways in which they access or do not access treatment.