Real Girl Real World A Guide to Finding Your True Self

by Gray, Heather M; Phillips, Samantha

• ISBN13: 9781580051330
• ISBN10: 1580051332
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-04-13
• Publisher: Seal Press

Summary

Teen girls receive mixed messages about who they should be—and what they should look like—from all facets of society. It’s no wonder they have difficulty finding out who they really are. This snappy, straight-talking guide—a veritable Our Bodies, Ourselves for teens—helps girls make up their own minds about what kind of people they want to be. Exploring a wide range of topics central to young women’s lives—including beauty and the media; body image, ethnicity and self-esteem; eating disorders and healthy nutrition; sexual anatomy, safe sex and much more—the authors dispel myths, put issues in perspective, and give girls the power to choose for themselves.

Author Biography

Heather M. Gray received her master’s degree in health behavior and health education from UNC Chapel Hill. She has worked as a full-time research assistant for an eating disorder study and co-authored three articles on the subject. She is currently a senior researcher for a teen pregnancy program Manhattan. Samantha Phillips received her master’s degree in education from Lesley College. She has worked as a researcher in educational psychology on the topics of reading comprehension and learning disabilities at Columbia University. Her writing has appeared a number of magazines and journals. She is currently working under former Clinton Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala at the University of Miami.

Table of Contents

Note to the New Edition	xi
Introduction	xiii
Chapter 1 The Beauty Standard-Wasting Our Time on Perfection
The Importance of Beauty: What a Headache	2	(2)
Cover Teasers from Popular Fashion Magazines	3	(1)
Feeling Ugly: Beauty and Self-Esteem	4	(4)
Here She Comes, Miss America	5	(1)
Fairy Tales: Pretty Little Princesses	6	(2)
Models of Beauty: A Split Second Captured on Film	8	(7)
Train to Be a Model	9	(2)
Picture Perfect: More Than Meets the Eye	11	(1)
Model Talk	12	(3)
Barbie: The Plastic Queen of Beauty	15	(1)
Barbie Tales	15	(1)
Fashion Trends: They Used to Wear What?	16	(5)
The Fashion Folly: The Bull about Beauty	20	(1)
Transforming Our Looks: The Big Makeover	21	(2)
Buns, Beehives, Dreads, or Crews: There's So Much to "Do"	23	(3)
Hair Appeal: Ideas the Industry Is Selling Us	23	(2)
Shaving, Plucking, Waxing: The Battle over Body Hair	25	(1)
Cosmetic Surgery and Procedures: Risky Business	26	(3)
Rebelling: Trashing the Beauty Standard	29	(3)
An Image of Our Own	30	(2)
Putting Beauty in Its Place	32	(4)
Six Smart Tips to Be Media Savvy	33	(3)
Chapter 2 Body Image-Can't Get No Satisfaction?
Thin, Thin, Thin: No Way to Win	36	(5)
Going...going...gone?	37	(1)
The Incredible Shrinking Woman	38	(3)
Dieting and Exercise: Are We Out of Control?	41	(3)
Real Bodies: Loving the One You Have	42	(2)
Taking Our Bodies to the Extreme: How Much Is Too Much?	44	(5)
How to Get Fit and Still Have a Life	49	(5)
An Alternative to Dieting: Healthy Eating	50	(2)
Women in Sports	52	(2)
Being Overweight: It's Not a Crime	54	(4)
The Fat Liberation Movement	55	(2)
Where the Fat Girls Are-and Proud of It	57	(1)
Breasts: They Come in All Shapes and Sizes	58	(4)
Taking Back Our Bodies	62	(5)
Chapter 3 Eating Disorders-When Eating Goes Way Out of Order
An Emotional Hunger? A Need for Control?	67	(4)
The Hungry Self	69	(2)
Compulsive Overeating: Emotional Stuffing	71	(1)
Anorexia Nervosa: A Slow Road to Self-Destruction	72	(4)
Eating Disorders in History	75	(1)
Bulimia Nervosa: It's a Vicious Cycle	76	(3)
Binge Eating Disorder	79	(2)
Not Quite Anorexia or Bulimia: Undefined Suffering	81	(1)
Knowing Someone with an Eating Disorder	82	(2)
What If I Have an Eating Disorder? Get Help!	84	(4)
Having an Eating Disorder: It Ain't Pretty	86	(2)
What We Miss When We Have an Eating Disorder: Life	88	(6)
Getting Help for Eating Problems	90	(4)
Chapter 4 Take a Good Look Down There-Menstruation, Anatomy, Orgasms, and Masturbation
Getting Your Period: How Big a Deal Is It?	94	(6)
Our Bodies, the Media...and Fields of Daisies.	95	(1)
Historical Fear of Menstruation	96	(4)
Pads and Tampons...and Some Alternatives	100	(2)
Toxic Shock Syndrome	100	(2)
Premenstrual Syndrome: Real or Imagined?	102	(3)
Getting to Know Your Anatomy	105	(1)
Pelvic Exams: The Journey to the Gynecologist	106	(4)
The Hymen	107	(2)
Your Vagina Is Your Friend	109	(1)
Orgasms: Our Bodies Rejoice	110	(3)
How Do We Have Orgasms?	112	(1)
Masturbation: Pleasure of Our Own	113	(1)
Freud's View on Female Orgasms	114	(1)
Sexual Fantasies: Having Fun with Daydreams	114	(1)
Know the Facts, Have Fun, and Be Healthy	115	(6)
Taking Back Our Health	116	(5)
Chapter 5 Coming to Terms with Our Sexuality
Having Your Bases Covered: There's More Than One Kind of Sex	121	(2)
Deciding to Be Sexual: You Say When	123	(7)
Romance Novels: The Only Place Where Sex Is Always Perfect	124	(5)
Let's Talk About Sex	129	(1)
Reputations: Sluts vs. Studs (Don't You Talk to Me That Way!)	130	(2)
Pressure: When the Heat Is On	132	(2)
Lesbians and Bisexuals: It's Not Taboo	134	(17)
The Kinsey Scale: The Fluid State of Sexuality	137	(1)
Out and About	138	(4)
Vampire Lesbians and Other Incredible Tales	142	(4)
We're Here, We're Queer	146	(3)
Trusting Our Feelings	149	(2)
Chapter 6 Being in Charge of Our Sexuality
Protection: Being Informed and Safe	151	(6)
Fantasy Island: Where Sex Is Dreamy and You Don't Have to Worry About Protection	154	(3)
Contraception: What, Where, and How	157	(13)
Making Sex Safer	158	(2)
How to Use a Condom	160	(5)
Which Contraceptive Methods Protect Us Against STIs?	165	(5)
Pregnancy: Teen Moms	170	(4)
Reality Check: Teen Pregnancy and Motherhood	172	(2)
Abortion: The Facts	174	(4)
History of Abortion	178	(4)
Sexually Transmitted Infections	182	(7)
Conditions That Are Not STIs	188	(1)
Sexual Assault	189	(7)
Definitions of Sexual Assault	191	(3)
Recovering from Sexual Assault	194	(2)
Taking Charge	196	(2)
Chapter 7 Feminism-What Is It, and Do We Care?
Some Key Terms	198	(4)
The F-Word: Why Some of Us Shun the Word "Feminist"	202	(3)
The History of Feminism: The Road Toward Equality	205	(9)
Pandora's Pages	206	(8)
Women of Color and Feminism: Ending Oppression on All Fronts	214	(4)
Recent Firsts for Women	214	(2)
Feminists Organize	216	(2)
Feminism Today: Are We Riding a Third Wave?	218	(6)
Feminism, Grrrl Style	222	(2)
Liking Our Rants and Ideas Public: Zines and Blogs	224	(1)
Finding Our Own Brand of Feminism	225	(4)
Get Involved	226	(3)
Conclusion: Be True to Yourself Always	229	(2)
Notes	231	(8)
Bibliography	239	(4)
Index	243	(14)
Credits	257