Hi there! I’m Christina, a mom of three littles, a licensed mental health therapist, and a children’s book author! Thanks for checking out my site. Look around! I’m sure there’s something here for you! This post is for parents looking to help make puberty and periods easier for their girls. We can do that with the help of Al Zonsius and The Period Academy.
Girls, Puberty, and Periods – Beginning the conversation with The Period Academy
When I began the Real Life Mama blog, I had two children in diapers. As they have grown, so have my blog topics. And with my oldest approaching 9 years old, it’s time I start offering articles about parenting tweens. No surprise, one of the big hitter topics for parents of 8-14 year old girls is puberty and periods.
Many of my peers received only slightly better education about periods than their own moms did. And don’t get me going on our poor grandmothers, who often had no eduction at all. They were left to figure things out for themselves! Or if they were brave enough, they might have asked their friends.
Nowadays, moms (and dads!) are trying to change the narrative. The hope is to educate our girls so they can not only be informed, but also empowered and confident.
The other day, I had the pleasure of speaking to Al Zonsius, the co-founder of an LA-based company, The Period Academy. I am so excited to share about her, her company, and how they can help you with having these conversations with our girls.
Before I jump into that though, you might be reading this thinking you’re ready to click to the next post because your daughter is too young. I would urge you to read to the end! And here’s why:
It is never too early to start these conversations!
Girls start getting their periods as young as 8 years old, and the average age of period onset is 12. We want to have these conversations beforehand! This helps to both lessen the awkwardness and to prevent the chats from being too little too late.
Who is Al Zonsius of The Period Academy?
Al is an upbeat and matter-of-fact wealth of information about all things female.
She is a mom to two young girls, an RN in Reproductive Health with over a decade of experience, and is in her final year of dual master’s degrees as a women’s health nurse practitioner and certified nurse-midwife. In both her personal and professional life, she has been the go-to person to teach young ladies and women about their bodies and changes.
Al has developed the ability to talk about things related to puberty and periods that are often considered too taboo or uncomfortable to bring up. It’s her aim to make the reality of having a period much less scary, easier to understand, free from mystery and myth, and possibly even, fun. She wants girls to be able to manage all aspects of having a period from bodily needs to logistics to emotions with ease and body positivity.
Begin the conversation with your daughter with the help of The Period Academy!
Many parents wonder where to even begin when it comes to puberty and periods. This is where The Period Academy comes in! With a lack of comprehensive education in schools, conversations about periods often fall solely to us parents, and let’s be honest, we might not have the resources or comfort level to provide all the information. By prioritizing education, The Period Academy helps build confidence in young girls and reduces the shame, embarrassment, and fear surrounding periods.
The Period Academy is an educational organization dedicated to empowering young girls by teaching them about their periods and bodies in a fun and engaging way. They offer a 1-hour in-person or virtual class, blending professional medical knowledge with a laid-back, interactive atmosphere.
Al’s presentation with The Period Academy provides a safe space for learning and conversation, aiming to reduce the shame, embarrassment, and fear often associated with periods. Designed for kids ages 8–14, the sessions are inclusive and welcome all children, regardless of how they identify, and encourage boys to participate as well. Through interactive demonstrations, relatable characters, and professional medical knowledge, The Period Academy helps build confidence in young girls and fosters open communication between parents and children.
Check out the infographic below to see what is included in the curriculum.
Note: If you are NOT interested in your daughter learning about sex or how the period relates to conception, HAVE NO FEAR. Al does not include anything sex related in this conversation.
How else can we support our girls?
I asked Al how else we can support our girls through these tween and teen years and body changes. Here were her recommendations!
- Use correct terminology for body parts and body changes:
From birth onwards, we can use anatomically correct terms for our daughter’s body parts – all of them! This does many things, one of which (this is a biggie!) is that it decreases childhood sexual abuse risk, but in terms of periods, using correct terms such as “vagina, vulva, labia, clitoris, anus, uterus, ovaries” enables our girls to understand they own body sensations and processes. - Provide exposure:
One of the best ways we can desensitize our girls and diminish any stigma is to be less hidden about our own periods. Instead of keeping pads, tampons, or period discs or cups neatly put away and out of sight, we can keep them in an open container in the bathroom. Not only will this show our daughters how often our cycles come around, but it will naturally spark curiosity and spur conversations about the items they’re seeing. - Talk openly:
I get it, your periods weren’t talked about in the home you grew up in. Periods are a topic you don’t usually speak about comfortably. But imagine if it was! How freeing! And you can provide that to your daughter. Speak as openly as you can about your own experience, maybe about your first period experience, maybe about how it impacts your mood, maybe about what soothes you when you have cramps, maybe about the period tools you prefer. - Get your partners involved in the conversations:
Girls want to be able to feel comfortable with moms AND dads, and to know that if they need help with their period when their mom isn’t available, that they can easily go to their dad (and that he will be comfortable with the topics, actually know what to do and how to help).
Schedule your session!
You can find The Period Academy online and on Instagram! And you can email them at info@theperiodacademy.com to set up a session for your daughter and her friends, for your daughter’s girl scout troop, or for a school class. With the options of in-person or virtual, there’s a convenient option for you!
