Archive for “December, 2007”

Review from New York Magazine

December 13th, 2007

New York Magazine
by Tim Murphy

Nancy Redd Sees Vulvas Everywhere

Growing up, Nancy Redd had a poor relationship with that part of her body that rhymes with Mulva, as Seinfeld famously noted. “I grew up in southern Virginia, where you’re lucky if it’s referred to as a hoo-ha,” said Redd, 26. Then she majored in women’s studies at Harvard, won Miss Virginia 2003 and placed in the top ten at Miss America 2004. With a postfeminist résumé like that, it was probably inevitable that she would write Body Drama, a version of Our Bodies, Ourselves for the self-image-addled teen girls and young women of Generation Z, coming out December 27. Covering everything from woes about lopsided boobs and personal smells to serious health issues, it’s full of un-retouched photos of buck-naked everyday women, all New Yorkers whom Redd found over Craigslist — including a centerfold of 24 vulvas that gives new meaning to the term “full spread.” Redd recounted that shoot to Tim Murphy.

So what did the Craigslist ad say?
It said, “Come show your vagina for a good cause.” We ended up shooting about 50. We wanted a variety of colors and shapes, hair and without hair. We concocted this table in a photo studio like you’d have at the gyno — a clean, sterile table with disposable paper. I paid $50 a vulva.

What kinds of women showed up?
There were artists and bankers and a lot of students. Women who wanted to share themselves with the world. I wanted it to be fun vaginas, a happy and wholesome project. We had a pizza area where people watched TV. One woman said, “I can’t wait for the book to come out. I’m going to make my boyfriend pick mine out.”

Who has actually seen this many vulvas? Lesbians and men who get a lot of play?
Men don’t look. When they saw [the vulvas in the book], they said, “I’ve never seen anything that looks like that.” They’re so used to their little airbrushed Playboy vulvas. They don’t understand that they’ve got makeup and glycerin down there in porn. When guys have sex, they’re not even paying attention to the real deal.

How do women relate to their vulvas?
You’d be surprised about the shame they feel. They say it’s too dark, it’s too deep, it’s too hairy, it’s not feminine — which is the most ironic. How can your vulva not be feminine?

How did your editor feel about the vulva spread?
It was preapproved in the contract, but when she saw it, she said, “Oh, wow, when you said ‘vulva,’ I thought you meant the front — the muff.” That’s the whole point. Anyone can see a muff. It’s not that interesting.

Um — did you take part in the spread?
I did. I couldn’t recognize myself in the photo, though. I was, like, “Oh, really?”

The book has a bit of an anti-waxing slant, don’t you think?
I don’t care what you end up doing as long as it’s for you first and foremost. If you’re waxing because your boyfriend won’t have sex with you otherwise, you need to think about that.

Do you think the shoot would’ve gone differently if you’d done it in L.A.?
Absolutely. They’re way more manicured. People are more real in New York. I had Indian, Hispanic, Asian, white, and black women who were all so full of spirit. New York is a city of dreams.

How has your family reacted?
My mom — for the first year she thought I was creating porn. She said, “At least I can tell the pastor the title.”

If you stare at the vulva spread, it takes on a beautiful, abstract-art quality.
If you ever go into a Cheesecake Factory, their lampposts are totally vaginal, too. Now I see vulvas everywhere.

Click Here for the full article!

Tagged as Book Reviews
Be the First to Comment
Comment Button


Facebook del.icio.us Digg Reddit Google StumbleUpon
Print This Post Print This Post
Email This Post Email This Post

Review from Healthline.com

December 11th, 2007

Body Drama; Real Girls, Real Bodies, Real Issues, Real Answers is a new book by Nancy Amanda Redd that should be on the shelf of every family, school, and doctor in America. This book provides pictures, knowledge and encouragement to young women everywhere to help them avoid feeling insecure, ugly or imperfect when faced with the air-brushed women the media bombards them with. This book covers it all - from body hair, bras, acne, weight issues, stinkies, bumpies, and even vaginal discharge!

I admit, when I agreed to review this book I assumed I would skim it, but I have to tell you that I read every single word, laughed, groaned, and even learned a thing or two (like what a queef is). This book is packed with very funny bad jokes, health information, body care tips and most importantly, full color photos of real women’s bodies described using real-world language. This is maybe the most important aspect of the book - real words to describe real bodies - that you get to see. These bodies help people understand that their bodies are normal. There is even a page of vulvas - yep, real ones!

Everywhere in this book is the message that you are perfect and anyone who loves you, should think you look perfect! If you change your body it must be because you want to and nobody has the right to try and make you feel bad! We all stink sometimes, get zits, and 85% of women have cellulite - so relax and love living!

I tried to get my 12-year old and her friends to offer some quotes about this book, but they blushed and said “Mom, we are too young,” but I will leave it on the shelf in my room though, where she knows she can find it and look through it in private. That said, I guess I better buy a copy to leave in my office, too! My 15-year old however, promises to read it during Christmas break and will publish her own review.

Nancy Amanda Redd has a Harvard degree with honors in women’s studies and was Miss Virginia. Her goal is writing this book seems to have been to help young women understand “normal” covers a very wide reality and differs for every shape, ethnicity, and size. This amazing book will hit the bookstores at the end of the month, but you can order your copy now at Amazon.com for only $13.60.

There is not enough I can say about this book! Thank you Nancy Redd!

by Nancy Brown, PhD, professor of Adolescent Sexuality at Stanford University, senior research associate at the Palo Alto Medical Foundation (PAMF) Research Institute.

To read the entire article, click here!

Tagged as Book Reviews
Be the First to Comment
Comment Button


Facebook del.icio.us Digg Reddit Google StumbleUpon
Print This Post Print This Post
Email This Post Email This Post

BOOK EXTRA: How to Improve Your Fiber Intake for Better Poos (from page 149)

December 5th, 2007

OK, so like my favorite kiddie book says, everybody poos. Problem is, many of us don’t take in enough fiber each day to make our pooing experience as pleasant as it should be. I get into the nitty-gritty of defecation (the medical term for pooing) on pages 148-154 of Body Drama, but here are some easy foods to improve your daily fiber intake.

Target Daily Fiber Intake:
At Least 25 Grams

Raw Fibrous Foods Include:

  • Avocado (1/2 medium) – 6.75 grams
  • Pear (medium, with skin) - 5.5 grams
  • Apple (medium, with skin) – 4.4 grams
  • Prunes (6 dried) – 4 grams
  • Banana (medium) - 3.1 grams
  • Strawberries (10 medium) – 2.4 grams
  • Peach (medium, with skin) - 2.2 grams
  • Raisins (1.5 oz box) – 1.6 grams

Fibrous Cooked Foods Include:

  • Navy Beans (1/2 cup) - 9.6 grams
  • Lentils (1/2 cup) - 7.65 grams
  • Baked Beans (1/2 cup canned) - 7 grams
  • Kidney Beans (1/2 cup) - 5.7 grams
  • Peas (1/2 cup) - 4.4 grams
  • Oatmeal (1 cup) – 4 grams
  • Collard Greens (1/2 cup cooked) - 2.65 grams
  • Corn (1 ear) - 1.8 grams

Fibrous Cereals Include:

  • General Mills’ Fiber One (1/2 cup) - 14.2 grams
  • Post’s 100% Bran (1/2 cup) - 12.4 grams
  • Kellogg’s All-Bran Original (1/2 cup) - 9.1 grams

(all figures come from the USDA National Nutrient Database)

Other Ways to Sneak More Fiber Into Your Diet:

  • Buy Psyllium Husk. Psyllium Husk is an excellent form of natural fiber found in many health stores in powder or capsule form. Follow the directions on the label and take it every day with at least one entire 8oz. glass of water. Cost: Under $15 for a month of daily supplements.
  • Buy Other Packaged Fiber Tablets and Powders. Though brand-name products are often more expensive and contain less fiber than psyllium husk, they can be appealing in taste and packaging. Be careful and look to make sure that there isn’t any added sugar or extra preservatives in the ingredient list!
  • Switch to Less Processed Foods. Simple choices can make huge differences in your fiber intake, like trading in your blueberry muffin (2 grams of fiber per serving) for a bran muffin (5 grams), asking for whole-wheat spaghetti (4.5 grams) instead of “regular” (2 grams), eating chunky peanut butter (2.6 grams) instead of smooth (1.9 grams), and using rye bread (2 grams) instead of white (1 gram).

A Sample Fiber Combination To Try (over 27 grams of Fiber)

Breakfast: General Mills’ Fiber One Cereal (along with a healthy meal)
Lunch: 1 Banana (along with a healthy meal)
Dinner: Peas (along with a healthy meal)
Snack: Guacamole made with 1/2 of an avocado

Voila! You’ve reached your daily target!

Have some favorite fibrous foods that you’d like to share? Contact me and I’ll include them and give you the credit!

DISCLAIMER: The author is not engaged in rendering professional advice or services to the individual reader. The ideas, procedures, and suggestions contained on this blog are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision. The author shall not be liable or responsible for any loss or damage allegedly arising from any information or suggestion on this blog.

Tagged as Book Extras
Comments (1)
Comment Button


Facebook del.icio.us Digg Reddit Google StumbleUpon
Print This Post Print This Post
Email This Post Email This Post

BOOK EXTRA: How to Find Mental Health Resources in Your Area

December 4th, 2007

As I say in Body Drama on page 224, sometimes body drama isn’t just physical. We all experience feelings of sadness, shame, self-hate, anger and hopelessness at various times and for a variety of reasons. It’s always a great idea to talk first with your parents, teachers, counselors and mentors about your problems, but it’s also very important to know where else you can turn when you need safe and accurate help and support.

For each state, below you will find the Web sites of two trustworthy organizations that can help you find mental health resources in your state and city:

1) The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Mental Health Services Locater, which is a comprehensive list of state, regional and local mental health organizations. Each of their state lists are sorted by category, so you will need to click around to find the perfect resource for you.


2) The State and Local Chapters of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, which is an organization dedicated to improving the lives of people with mental health concerns.

Both of these Web sites offer localized opportunities for you to obtain guidance and advice either over the telephone or in person. If you’re suffering from feelings of depression, click on the links underneath your state’s listing and seek the help you need to feel better NOW. Remember, you are not alone!

DISCLAIMER: The author is not engaged in rendering professional advice or services to the individual reader. The ideas, procedures, and suggestions contained on this blog are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision. The author shall not be liable or responsible for any loss or damage allegedly arising from any information or suggestion on this blog.

Tagged as Book Extras
Be the First to Comment
Comment Button


Facebook del.icio.us Digg Reddit Google StumbleUpon
Print This Post Print This Post
Email This Post Email This Post

BOOK EXTRA: How To Find Sexual Health Resources in Your Area

December 2nd, 2007

As I say on page 132 of Body Drama, if you are sexually active, sometimes you’ll have questions or you’ll want to obtain sexual health resources like of birth control, tests for infections, and more detailed information. You might not want to talk to your family or teachers, but it’s a terrible idea to make important decisions about your life without getting the help of a medical professional (and no, your best friend who got an “A” in Health class doesn’t count).

Don’t take any chances with your health and your future! Put your fears and embarrassment aside, and use your local sexual health resources. There you can safely and easily obtain the support, information, tests and products you need. Here’s help finding a resource near you.

There are two amazing and safe ways to use the Web to find a comprehensive list of state and local sexual health resources near you - the Planned Parenthood website and the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association (NFPRHA) website. So that you don’t feel overwhelmed by the amount of information each site provides, I’m going to walk you through the process with screenshots of each step to make your search easy and painless! Click the images to enlarge them.

1) Planned Parenthood
http://www.plannedparenthood.org

You can always count on Planned Parenthood to have the resources and advice you need. Contrary to popular belief, dealing with issues of pregnancy is only a fraction of what their clinics provide! They can give you affordable antibiotics, test you for sexually transmitted diseases and yeast and other infections, give you your annual pap smear, and much more!

Once you’ve typed in the website URL and you’re on the home page, enter your zip code in the box underneath the words “Find a Health Center.” I’m going to use 10128 as my zip code.
pp1

Up comes the 20 centers that are closest to your zip code! In this case, the nearest Planned Parenthood is less than four miles away.
pp2

You’ll notice that to the right of each Planned Parenthood’s listing there is a list of the services they provide. The one closest to you might not offer the service you need, so check the listing for details. Now that you have the contact information for all nearby clinics, you can call them to schedule an appointment or to ask about their services.

2) National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association
http://nfprha.org/

Next, let’s check out the NFPRHA website for a few more options - they list all other clinics in your area. Once you’ve typed in the URL and you’re on the home page, enter your zip code in the box below the words, “Clinics Near You.”
fp

The clinic possibilities appear on the next page, and Dr. Diaz’s clinic, the Mt. Sinai Adolescent Center, shows up as a service provider in the 10128 area!
fp2

Let’s click on her clinic to get the information.
fp3

Great - an address AND phone number - everything you need to get the information and help you want.

Now that you are armed with a lot of options, what are you waiting for? Get proactive about taking care of yourself and your body and call one of the clinics in your area right now!

DISCLAIMER: The author is not engaged in rendering professional advice or services to the individual reader. The ideas, procedures, and suggestions contained on this blog are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision. The author shall not be liable or responsible for any loss or damage allegedly arising from any information or suggestion on this blog.

Tagged as Book Extras
Be the First to Comment
Comment Button


Facebook del.icio.us Digg Reddit Google StumbleUpon
Print This Post Print This Post
Email This Post Email This Post
« Previous Page