Surviving Puberty: How to Support Your Daughter and Create a Lasting Bond
Puberty sucks! I know “sucks” is a negative word and I don’t want to offend you by using it, but I also don’t want to lie. Puberty changes the relationship between you and your daughter. Her friends become more important than family, her mood swings make your head spin, and communication feels like a strain – it all leaves you feeling frustrated and heartbroken – but it doesn’t have to be that way. Especially if you start talking about puberty with your daughter while she is still a young tween.
Who am I and why I am I so passionate about talking about puberty? I’m a puberty survivor turned puberty ally. And while that sounds a little dramatic, it fits. I didn’t have any coping skills to help me understand and manage the changes my body and life were going through, so I had a pretty rough puberty experience.
Now that I’ve made it to the other side of girl puberty, and I have a daughter of my own, I’ve made it my personal mission to create puberty resources for you with the goal of helping you and your daughter thrive through puberty while creating a lasting bond.
How I Became a Puberty Ally
Puberty can be such an awkward, embarrassing, and even shameful time in a girl’s life; it was for mine anyway. My changing body made my tween and teen years full of dread, shame, and super low self-esteem. I loved being a girl, but I HATED the idea of being a woman! I wanted to stay 8 years old forever!!
Understanding Girl Puberty
I was a confident tween girl up until the 7th grade. It was all downhill after that! I didn’t understand what was happening to my body and I was super ashamed of how it was changing. By the time I was a teenager, stretchmarks scarred way more than my hips and thighs and sweating armpits shut my mouth. I became withdrawn and suffered from severe social anxiety and depression. It sucked! The one time I reached out for help, my family doctor said it was, “just a phase.” Ok, true, puberty is a phase, but is that any reason to not help a girl out? My pain and mental suffering could have been avoided had someone just taken the time to really talk with me and supported me in coping with the changes of puberty.
Thrive Through Girl Puberty
I took Sex-Ed in the 5th grade and had a mom who was totally open to talking about anything, but I was too closed off to speak up. And that is why I am the Puberty Ally I am today. I understand girl puberty in a way that others don’t. I talk about puberty-related topics that you won’t find anywhere else. That’s why Real Girl Puberty’s content will help you do more than just survive through girl puberty, you’ll thrive through it and even have some fun along the way.
About me…
I’m on a mission to help girls THRIVE through puberty while creating a lasting family bond.
- Body hair was my first sign of puberty. I started getting underarm hair in the 4th grade.
- I got my first period during the summer between 5th and 6th grade. I was NOT prepared!
- I made a deal with my mom (and a bet with a boy) to agree to wearing a bra if she agreed to let me shave my legs. The boy had to shave his leg with an Epilady shaver!
- I still wear an A-cup. Be careful what you wish for folks!
Also about me…
- I LOVE coffee!
- I’m from Los Angeles but I currently live in Pennsylvania. Which is about as shocking to my grown-up self as me talking about puberty! I never saw PA in my future.
- I’m an identical twin (and a Gemini)
- I’m an award-winning drummer! I don’t remember the exact details, but I won an award for being the best female drummer. And my “Al Bundy moment?” Opening up for Guns n’ Roses Appetite for Destruction 20th anniversary. We Rocked “Rocket Queen” better than Adler ;). Look up Auburn Court music videos on YouTube for more proof.
- I’d love to know you! Connect with Real Girl Puberty on the socials @realgirlpuberty or email me directly at crystal@realgirlpuberty.com.