Recovered-ish Recovery from Barbie Land: How the Patriarchy Affects Our Mental Health
I discuss the Barbie movie and my thoughts about what the Barbie movie themes, specifically how patriarchy impacts our mental health, how girls often are forced to grow up and give up dolls and their feminine interests in order to be taken seriously and fit in, how fangirls are demeaned and why I am hoping between Barbie and The Eras Tour we are reclaiming our feminine interests this summer and being apologetic about who and what we like.
I share my own experiences of girlhood, how I tried to be a “chill girl who likes sports” and how girls and women can inadvertently impose patriarchal ideas on other girls once it's been done to us. I explore the research about how girls’ confidence takes a huge nosedive during puberty compared to boys’ even though girls are more academically strong during this time and the factors that lead to that. I share my recommendations for what you can do if you have a daughter and how you can support her in building her confidence.
Resources mentioned:
For the Love of fangirls Ted Talk Yve Blake: For the love of fangirls | TED Talk
Fangirls Article https://www.vogue.in/culture-and-living/content/its-time-we-stopped-treating-fangirls-as-pop-cultures-favourite-punchline
America Ferrera Interview - https://remezcla.com/film/america-ferrera-barbie-says-this-is-big-difference-between-women-men-growing-up/
Article from Emily Oster- https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/05/normalize-parenthood-workplace-dont-hide-it/589822/
Her book Cribsheet- https://www.amazon.com/Cribsheet-Data-Driven-Relaxed-Parenting-Preschool/dp/0525559256
The confidence code for girls & women For girls- https://hcleadershipessentials.com/products/the-confidence-code-for-girls-taking-risks-messing-up-becoming-your-amazingly-imperfect-totally-powerful-self?currency=USD&variant=40187518419082&gad=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw_aemBhBLEiwAT98FMuOa_4wBwaFiZZuyB1DlE5FVvgjmzLPyqGZDN8zXlxgLN7N1Kru3KBoCSLUQAvD_BwE;
To suggest a topic, buy my books, or get in touch please visit www.amandaewhite.com.
If you are interested in therapy or learning more about my practice, Therapy for Women Center, visit www.therapyforwomencenter.com. We currently serve 27 states virtually and have three physical office locations in the Philadelphia area.
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