I
am an Australian psychologist, mother and educator and I am so excited to be
able blog and start a conversation about some of the issues that fire me up:
women’s bodies, minds and relationships.
What is great about a cyber blog is that it can reach women all over the
world. And I have had many wonderful opportunities to talk with women from many
different cultures and in many different places, in jails, refuges, board
meetings, schools, universities and remote indigenous communities. And whether
it be on an indigenous reserve in Arizona, a New York prison, an Australian
Aboriginal community or a suburban neighborhood, I have found that women talk about the same
things: their rights, their body and self image, their food and weight issues,
their kids and families, their relationships, their futures and that of the
planet.
And
what I sense in all of them is a frustration that they are not being seen and
heard for who they are. And that they are tired of being objects of desire,
second class citizens, victims of violence and subjugation. So I would like to start a conversation with
women about these things so that we can find another way of seeing each other,
so that we stop competing with each other and judging ourselves and each other
by criteria set by those who do not have our best interests at heart.
As
a psychologist, I see many girls and women whose lives are destroyed by their
negative self beliefs, their hateful self images and their fears of not being
good enough. But psychology happens in a closed room, in isolation. And if
there is no change outside the room then there is no support for the healing
process.
And
if women do not begin to change the way they see and think about themselves
then it is almost impossible for girls to grow into their full potential. So it
is my wish to create a better world for girls that drives me to appeal to all
women, to start to change the way we see ourselves.
When I traveled to the Australian desert to stay
with a community of Aboriginal women and met women who did not define
themselves by their physical appearances, I realized I was in an image free
zone for the first time in my life. It
was liberating to be with women who were not at all conscious of how they
looked, because it began to rub off on me. After days without make-up and
mirrors I let myself be seen by these women whom I knew were not judging me by
my looks but by a very different set of criteria. And these women had a wisdom
and connection to with each other that is rarely found in modern women’s
relationships. They are so inspiring, I
want to share their wisdom, their networking and connection. And I can’t think
of a better launching pad than cyber space to propel modern women into an IMAGE
FREE ZONE.
