When it comes to issues like drugs, drinking, and sex, parents often feel the most difficult part is how to begin and maintain an open, honest conversation.
Thankfully, if you’re raising a girl between the ages of 9 and 12, Dr. Chrystal de Freitas has your back — at least in regards to the sex education aspect. The pediatrician (and a mother of daughters herself) has launched a new product called My First Period Kit which is designed to educate girls about puberty, menstruation and sex.
Seven of our bloggers (and several of the daughters) took this opportunity to watch the DVDs included in the kit. Many of these moms appreciated the gentle, yet direct manner in which the information was delivered.
According to one reviewer, the DVDs are “presented from the POV of an observer in one of her seminars, where you are in a room with several mothers and their daughters participating in a ‘chat.’ This makes for a very informal and effective way of hearing the information, as you never feel that you are being directly ‘lectured’ at, and all of the participants never seemed like they were reading from scripts or being prompted. Much better than my approach, where I planned to use flow charts (no pun intended) laser pointers and life-sized mannequins.” Another described the approach as “an authentic, easy to understand, painless ‘modern approach to that traditional chat between a mother and daughter’. That’s how the DVD is billed and that’s exactly what you get.”
Many bloggers were very pleased to observe that the good doctor, (who has been described as “the older sister that I never had, and long ago gave up wishing for“) has a talent for taking the embarrassment out of these discussions.
“DeFrietas’ manner was down to earth, compassionate and friendly, with a handful of silliness and just enough joking around to immediately set everyone watching at ease,” writes one reviewer. Another believes that “some may balk at her using the word “’potty’ rather than toilet but I think her silliness and gift to speak like children adds to her charm. It definitely makes everything seem so less medical and more personal.”
The 99-minute DVD covers “all the bases (and I do mean ALL the bases, with sections on puberty and menstruation, sex and reproduction and even demos on how to insert tampons and use pads correctly. In a CHAIR, not an ACTUAL demo).” But at the same time many felt that the information presented wasn’t too much. One reviewer “liked how Dr. Freitas gives age appropriate information in a language that children understand.” Still, another blogger chimed in, “I agree that 9-12 is a good target age for having The Period Talk, although I would feel comfortable suggesting the video for even 7-8 year old girls to view with their parent.”
And? Parents can choose what to discuss and when. “There is also a section on ‘the birds and the bees’ but it is separate from the rest of the DVD so you can chose to watch that or not.”
One clever blogger gave the DVD the ultimate test. Before viewing the main DVD of the My First Period Kit, “I asked my daughter to first write down at least five things she knew about puberty. Then I asked her to write down five questions she had, and to see whether the video confirmed what she knew or answered her questions…It’s a testament to Dr. de Freitas mad puberty education skills that all of my daughter’s questions were answered thoroughly in the DVD.”
The kit, (which contains the DVDs, bracelet, and purse pad), isn’t just for moms looking to impart some information. “This would be a GREAT product for a dad who is raising a daughter on his own,” notes one blogger.
Although bloggers raved about the overall message and the delivery of that message, there is one issue that may offend some parents. “Proponents of un-traditional family structures may chafe at her occasional mention that in order to have a baby you must be married and a father has to be present,” writes one of our reviewers. “I took the opportunity to point out to my girls that that wasn’t necessarily true, but did throw in that 16 and pregnant would definitely get them locked in their bedrooms for ten years without their iPods and a downgrade to dial-up internet.”
All in all, “I would recommend the Kit to any mother with daughters,” assesses one mom. “After all, we need all the help we can get as embark on our new adventure through puberty”.
Interested? Take a sneak peak if you want to see for yourself how it’s done.
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stumbled upon your blog and wow - such wonderful information, i cant wait to share your resources with my girlfriends!