Relational agency and embodied pain: Insights from feminist transnational encounters

This article explores the concept of relational agency framed by feminist liberation psychology and body politics. Taking a feminist epistemological and methodological stance, the authors analyse agency in moments of embodied female pain—breast cancer and the risk of miscarriage. As feminist researchers, they reflect on their embodied experiences and encounters in two different contexts, one in a nongovernmental organisation (NGO) project in Guatemala and the other in an early cyberfeminist network. These transnational feminist encounters produce reflections on how individual bodies are politicised, regulated, and subjected to social expectations in experiences of trauma and vulnerability. The article examines embodied pain and loss of agency through the feminist methodologies of storytelling, reflection, and reflexivity. The authors argue that relational agency can be seen as integral to resilience, collectively shaped through shared life stories, honest reflections on differences, and togetherness in discomfort. Their narratives, integral to intersectional feminism and gender and development, underscore the significance of future projects. Recognising their interconnectedness and shared vulnerability, the authors use the article to advocate emancipatory practices to overcome oppression. Additionally, the authors contribute ideas for resistance mechanisms that can foster intentional, reciprocal relationships for individual and social transformation within empowerment processes.