Your health is a lifelong journey and it is unique to you. We all have our own reasons for wanting to be healthy and ways of going about it. Taking small steps for your health can make a big difference over time! This National Women’s Health Week, we are encouraging women to reflect on their health and share how they make healthy habits part of their everyday lives. Below, a few women leaders here at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services share how they find their health, why women should prioritize their health, and how their work is helping women lead healthy lives.

Dorothy Fink, M.D.

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Women's Health and Director, Office on Women's Health, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

“National Women’s Health Week is about taking steps to achieve better health. Finding my health means taking time to reach my health goals and taking the advice that I give my patients and family! This year, my goal is to work on upper body muscle strength. It feels great to see progress with my core strength and to lift progressively heavier dumbbells. I am also trying to make sure that I eat enough foods with calcium every day. Calcium is essential for human life and many of us do not eat enough calcium through food. It is well known that calcium makes our bones strong, but it also makes our heart and muscles contract. I am determined to eat enough calcium through food every day. National Women’s Health Week is also a time to think about preventive screening and vaccines with your health care provider. We encourage women to figure out if they (or their family or friends) are due for the MMR vaccine to protect against measles, mumps, and rubella."

Kaveeta P. Vasisht, M.D., Pharm.D.

Acting Associate Commissioner and Deputy Director, Office of Women’s Health, Office of the Commissioner, U.S. Food and Drug Administration

“Finding my health means maintaining my physical and mental well-being. This can include taking a challenging fitness class with a friend, making creative healthy meals with my family, getting lost in a captivating novel, and engaging in a few minutes of daily mindfulness.”

Pattie Tucker, M.P.H., Dr.P.H.

Director for the Office of Women’s Health, Office of Minority Health and Health Equity, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

“The majority of caregivers are women. They are our mothers, grandmothers, wives, daughters, sisters, and nieces who unselfishly put the needs of others over their own needs. If you are that woman, take time today to find your health. Make your physical, mental, and emotional well-being your number one priority.”

Camille Fabiyi, Ph.D., M.P.H.

Senior Advisor for Women’s Health and Gender Research, Office of Extramural Research, Education and Priority Populations, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

“It’s important that women not only take time for themselves, but that communities support women’s health and health care across the entire life course. Finding my health includes taking time to center myself and engage in activities and interactions that bring me joy and peace, such as running outdoors, getting proper rest, and spending quality time with family and friends.”

Janine Austin Clayton, M.D.

Associate Director for Research on Women’s Health and Director of the Office of Research on Women’s Health, National Institutes of Health

“At the Office of Research on Women’s Health, our mission is to enhance research on conditions affecting women, ensure that women are represented in research, and promote the advancement of women in biomedical careers. ‘Women’s health’ was once synonymous with reproductive health. Today, scientists recognize that the ‘health of women’ encompasses all medical conditions. Forward-looking research must consider the intersecting factors of sex and gender, race/ethnicity, social determinants of health, and other influences, harnessing the expertise of many fields.”

Sabrina Matoff-Stepp, Ph.D.

Director, Office of Women’s Health, Health Resources and Services Administration

“Finding my health means I am taking time each day to center and reflect in a quiet space. As a leader, mentor, and colleague at the Health Resources and Services Administration, I am inspired by the important roles that women of all ages play in their families and communities and how all of us can make a difference.”

Join these women leaders in celebrating National Women’s Health Week! If you are looking for ideas on how you can find your health, we can help with that, too! Use our online tool to explore your health goals, what motivates you, and reasons why it might be hard to stay on track with healthy behaviors like eating well and getting enough physical activity. Based on your responses, you will receive personalized tips to help you take the next step on your health journey. Get started today!