Taking the Drama Out of Body Drama

Jan. 10, 2008 — -- Whether they look on the newsstand, television, runway or billboard, teenage girls have plenty of opportunities to catch a glimpse of beauty and "perfection" — and often to lament how unattainable it seems.

"You look at the magazine cover and you just think 'That's perfection, and I'm never gonna look like that,'" Tory O'Brien, 17, said. "I can never be perfect."

"We don't look like that," Elizabeth Perez, 18, agreed. "We're never going to have that skin. Our breasts aren't always going to be the same size or the same cup."

Body Drama

Former Miss America contestant Nancy Amanda Redd decided enough was enough and it was time to give girls a rare glimpse of what real, un-airbrushed women struggle with.

Provocative photos and candid text about everything from pimples to periods can be found inside the pages of Redd's new book, "Body Drama." The idea is to show teenage girls that not being perfect is not only perfectly normal, but perfectly beautiful.

"I wanted to provide a resource for young women to have un-airbrushed, real bodies of cellulite and scars and tummy rolls," Redd said. "I talk about underwear skid marks. I talk about period clots. I talk about period stains. I talk about the dregs of body drama we deal with."

Real Girls Weigh In

"Good Morning America" invited a panel of six teenage girls, including O'Brien and Perez, to discuss the book and what it's like to be a young woman in a seemingly size 2 society.

Each girl was quick to name the part of her body she'd like to change. Their desired body alterations ranged from a smaller butt to a bigger chest to clearer skin.

The girls said they liked the book, particularly its graphic detail. Virtually no topic is off limits as it delves into intimate issues that have typically been sources of shame for young women — unseemly digestive problems, body odor, infected tattoos and regions "down there."

And forget demure diagrams. "Body Drama" features real girls with real bodies who could clearly relate to the panelists' anxiety about being judged by their peers.

Anxiety is something the young women know firsthand. "I have some discoloration on my stomach," Jackie Lemieux, 18, said. "In sophomore year of high school … obviously when you change in front of a bunch of girls, they're gonna look at you. I wasn't always changing in a corner and stuff like that, but it was always so in the back of my head, 'What are they going to think about what's on my stomach?'"

Idalia Castro, 18, could relate. "My stomach is really hairy," she said. "And then one day, I was going to the pool and my ex-boyfriend was there. I took off my towel, and he was like, 'Oh, you got a lot of hair on your stomach.'"

The Good News

The more young girls know about their bodies (and love their bodies), the healthier they're likely to be. According to a study by the American Psychological Association, girls who feel bad about their bodies are at an increased risk for a host of health problems, including eating disorders, smoking and poor sexual health.

Furthermore, the list of celebrities the panelists said they admire is encouraging. These women — like Beyonce, Tyra Banks, Jennifer Love Hewitt — are not stick skinny but still appear confident and beautiful.

The no-airbrushing-allowed stance "Body Drama" takes was refreshing for the panelists. "It's needed, and I think it's going to create a new generation of girls who are like, 'I'm all right with my body, and I'm going to be able to go to the doctor and say this is what's wrong with me,'" Lonai Noble said.

What Parents Can Do

Encourage your daughter to become familiar with the characteristics particular to her body. Have her do a self-exam.

According to "Body Drama," nine out of 10 girls say they feel some shame when talking about their vaginas. It's important they get to know themselves and get over the embarrassment so they know what to look for in case there are significant changes.

This is particularly true given the high rates of sexually transmitted diseases in this country: According to the American Social Health Association, one out of every three young people will contract an STD by the time they are 25.

Find out who else your daughter has been talking to. Where is she getting her information? Is her source reliable? If it's her friends and classmates, chances are she's getting a lot of misinformation. Also consider the health-care professionals she sees. Does she feel comfortable asking her pediatrician potentially embarrassing questions? If there is an adolescent specialist in your area, discuss whether your daughter would be more comfortable with that practice?

And most critically, talk to your girls. "Parents need to know that it's important to talk," Redd said. "Even if they give the 'Body Drama' book to them and close the door and hope they read it, they need to come back to it and discuss things with them."

Mom, in particular, can start that conversation by talking about her own experiences. Chances are your daughter may be dealing with some of the same problems you went through as an adolescent. Letting her know that she's not weird and is not the only one who's had this issue eliminates some of the shame.

"It's so easy to have an hourlong conversation about mundane things or things that are socially acceptable," Redd continued. "We've got to start talking about the things that our body does and doesn't do."