Hello all!
. . . With such a dearth of comprehensive, accurate sexual health education, many girls turn to outside sources for information. Unfortunately, these “outside sources” tend to be sensationalized TV shows, gossip at sleepovers or in the locker room, and Urban Dictionary or other not-quite-scientific sites online. And even if, in the best case scenario, a teen girl does manage to pick up a more informative guidebook on puberty, sex, and other relevant topics, the standard advice books for teen girls on the market today barely skim the surface of some of the more important issues girls face, including HIV, depression and body dysmorphia.
Melissa Banigan, a fiction novelist, editor, travel blogger, marketer and single mother, thinks girls around the world deserve a lot better. To address this problem, Melissa started a project called Advice to My Thirteen-Year-Old Self, an anthology that will consist of letters by fifty women from around the world writing advice to their thirteen-year-old selves about entering womanhood.
“Unlike many advice books for teens that only gloss over our bodies and women’s health,” says Melissa, “this book candidly talks about sex, HIV/AIDS and the clitoris. Letters also discuss female genital mutilation, genocide, rape and a variety of other topics so often seen in the news, but rarely discussed in classrooms. The book won’t be delicate. Instead, it will treat the young women reading it like strong, intelligent people who are capable of making their own decisions.” . . .
Perhaps it shouldn’t be innovative in 2014 to talk openly about the bodies, lives and minds of real women and girls*, but the truth is, much of the information girls receive about womanhood is incomplete, misleading, or even harmful to their health and self esteem. The conversations (or lack thereof) about women’s bodies in our media and society today give girls the impression that there is something inherently wrong with or shameful about our female selves. Melissa’s project subverts that silence and sheds light on these important issues, empowering girls with the knowledge they need to approach womanhood confidently and successfully.
Make sure to check out Melissa’s Indiegogo campaign and follow the Advice to My Thirteen-Year-Old Self project online.
Have you seen the post I wrote recently for Winnovating, an awesome blog that highlights women who are innovating in their field? I wrote about Melissa Banigan, a truly inspiring woman who is "winnovating" how we give advice to teenage girls through her upcoming anthology "Advice to My Thirteen-Year-Old Self". I've included an excerpt from my post below, and you can see the whole thing by following this link to the Winnovating website.
. . . With such a dearth of comprehensive, accurate sexual health education, many girls turn to outside sources for information. Unfortunately, these “outside sources” tend to be sensationalized TV shows, gossip at sleepovers or in the locker room, and Urban Dictionary or other not-quite-scientific sites online. And even if, in the best case scenario, a teen girl does manage to pick up a more informative guidebook on puberty, sex, and other relevant topics, the standard advice books for teen girls on the market today barely skim the surface of some of the more important issues girls face, including HIV, depression and body dysmorphia.
Melissa Banigan, a fiction novelist, editor, travel blogger, marketer and single mother, thinks girls around the world deserve a lot better. To address this problem, Melissa started a project called Advice to My Thirteen-Year-Old Self, an anthology that will consist of letters by fifty women from around the world writing advice to their thirteen-year-old selves about entering womanhood.
“Unlike many advice books for teens that only gloss over our bodies and women’s health,” says Melissa, “this book candidly talks about sex, HIV/AIDS and the clitoris. Letters also discuss female genital mutilation, genocide, rape and a variety of other topics so often seen in the news, but rarely discussed in classrooms. The book won’t be delicate. Instead, it will treat the young women reading it like strong, intelligent people who are capable of making their own decisions.” . . .
Perhaps it shouldn’t be innovative in 2014 to talk openly about the bodies, lives and minds of real women and girls*, but the truth is, much of the information girls receive about womanhood is incomplete, misleading, or even harmful to their health and self esteem. The conversations (or lack thereof) about women’s bodies in our media and society today give girls the impression that there is something inherently wrong with or shameful about our female selves. Melissa’s project subverts that silence and sheds light on these important issues, empowering girls with the knowledge they need to approach womanhood confidently and successfully.
Make sure to check out Melissa’s Indiegogo campaign and follow the Advice to My Thirteen-Year-Old Self project online.
