Almost a Woman

Almost a Woman
By Jaqueline Douge

Womanhood encompasses many aspects. To fully appreciate the thought of womanhood, one needs to explore how to become a woman. The journey to womanhood starts with the modeling by the young woman’s female role models. The most important model for a young woman is her mother.

Today the importance of the mother is more than in the past. Young women have more images competing for their attention and modeling. There is peer pressure to be like other girls and the actresses on television. I say this to underscore the importance of parental involvement in rearing and shaping a young girl’s view of herself and her place in society. This must be stressed even more in the context of the American society.

The privileges guaranteed by years of struggle by past generations appear to be taken for granted. The opportunities that exist for further growth and development are available, but not always easily accessible. Far too few black women have seen the moon, discovered a cure for disease or produced an Oscar-winning drama. The achievements of merit and accolade are those of beauty, and intelligence is stressed less. The images craved are the women dancing half naked at the club or telling her man off for sleeping with her sister. We are more than these images, but the best can be forgotten when not emphasized or learned.

I hope to remind our young girls and women of color that we are more than how others describe us. We must seek to define ourselves with the understanding that our greatness is the sum of our past, present and future. Our dreams are worthy to be realized. Young women must learn to perceive themselves as beautiful and intelligent. I will start this journey with a view of the changes that a young woman’s body goes through to become a woman.

Puberty

This is a period of womanhood that marks a physiological and psychological change for a young girl. For many African-American girls, this stage of life is often earlier than her white counterparts. Studies have shown that African-American girls are starting breast and pubic hair development two years earlier than years ago.

Young women go through many changes as they leave childhood and become adolescents. Many young girls can start puberty about 8-9 years of age. The first sign of puberty will be the appearance of breasts followed by the development of pubic hair and hair under the arms. This period of time is very frightening and confusing for a young girl. What is made even more difficult in talking with an African-American girl is that for centuries their bodies have been the topic of conversation. Black women are thought to have big buttocks. The music videos take advantage of this stereotype and exploit it for sexual purposes. How then should a mother combat these perceived stereotypes and help her daughter feel comfortable?

I believe this is best done by starting early to explain to young girls what they are to expect. This is done at the time the young girl begins to ask questions about her body and when she starts to develop signs of physical maturity. Since many young women are maturing earlier, a parent will have to explain in a manner that is appropriate for the child’s maturity level. I also feel it is imperative that the mother or guardian watches and discusses the images that the child is viewing on television and hearing in music. Parents will need to seek out books and set aside a special time to speak with their children.

I will try to provide some information about the physical changes that the body goes through to serve as a help in your discussions. In medicine, children are given stages of pubertal development. These stages are known as Tanner Staging. There is staging for breast and pubic changes.

The changes that your daughter will go through are due to hormones. The brain produces hormones known as gonadotropin releasing hormone, an important messenger that then travels to the pituitary gland. This gland is responsible for the production of leutinizing and follicle stimulating hormones. These hormones in turn travel to the ovaries where they stimulate the ovaries to secrete estrogen. It is this hormone which begins the process of womanhood. The breasts start to develop and eventually pubic hair develops.

In time, the young girl will begin menstruating--the period. This is the monthly visitor no one wants, but gets anyway. Most girls will begin their period within 1 to 2 years after their first breast buds develop. Estrogen also is important to developing the uterus. The uterus is where the period develops. It should be restated that the discussion of the changes of the body should begin before the onset of the period.

And it’s better that your daughter discusses it with you first.

Jacqueline Douge has been a board-certified pediatrician for about 5 years and practices in New Jersey. She is also a second-year Masters of Public Health candidate at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Her interests are in adolescent health, health disparities and health policy. She is a wife and mother of two sons, aged 6 and 3 years old.