For those of us who still describe ourselves as feminists, Susan Sarandon’s recent refusal of the title warns that, if we want people to keep listening to us, we need to focus on cooperating rather than on power struggles. “I believe in equality. The problem I’ve had with feminists is that they always insist that […]
One in three women will terminate a pregnancy before she turns 40, but without real women sharing their stories, abortion will stay a political issue rather than a personal one. Senior year of high school, between French and Stats, in a fluorescently lit, poorly tiled bathroom, my friend huddled our small group around her and […]
It wasn’t until Jacqui Morton feared the worst that she began to appreciate what her breasts are capable of and what they represent to her. I’ve never been too concerned about my breasts. Not good with the self exams. Truth is, before any of this baby stuff, my breasts were baggage. Big. Annoying. Never pretty. […]
Emily Rapp has a disability, but that doesn’t give people the right to scrutinize her body. “Hey, how come you’re parking there?” A woman asked me recently as I got out of my car in the handicapped/disabled/definitely abled/differently abled parking spot in front of my gym in Santa Fe. There was an edge in her […]
While women may view morality and crime differently than men, their views, processes, and contributions to the legal system are not inferior to what men offer, says Laurel Hermanson. Any time you ever get a group of women together, it’s never a good thing. When you’re dealing with all kinds of personalities in there and […]
Getting wrinkles is natural. Sagging skin is natural. Thinning hair is natural. Why do we fight so hard against the things that are just a natural part of life? I was 22 when I stumbled across the blueprint for transforming myself from a young, semi-confident, recent college graduate into a gawky fifth grader. The article […]
Originally appeared on The Frisky. Republished here with permission. I was so sure I was having a boy. I’d even given my baby a boy name, and I talked to my belly and told him he was a great son. A strong, noble, excellent son. People said, “A mother knows…” and nodded along with me. […]
What would you say to your estranged older sister as she lay dying in her hospital bed? How do you find closure after years of fighting and abuse? The night my sister turned 49 my father called to tell me she was throwing up blood. “They think the cancer’s spread to her stomach,” he said. […]
Originally appeared on The Daily Life. Republished here with permission. Dear Mom, I was 7 when I discovered that you were fat, ugly, and horrible. Up until that point I had believed that you were beautiful—in every sense of the word. I remember flicking through old photo albums and staring at pictures of you standing […]
Cate Dicharry was not prepared for the all-encompassing love she’d have for her child that would wipe out any signs of the woman she once was. I am thoroughbred for Motherlove. My father and mother are each one of eight children, in the case of my maternal grandmother, eight children amid 12 pregnancies. In the […]
The gym’s a place to bond and sweat out daily frustrations, but it’s also a place to feel inadequate. I like gyms. I always have. The lights, the music, the clanking weights, the parade of spandex, the climate-controlled air. My exercise habits have occasionally tipped in an obsessive direction, but for the most part, exercise […]
Is it possible to tell your girlfriends the hard, honest truth without being labeled a bitch? Laurel Hermanson explores. Bitch: “An insult propagated into Old English by the Christian rulers of the Dark Age to suppress the idea of femininity as sacred.” —Clare Bayley, “Bitch: A History” My husband and I once had friends over […]
