‘We Don’t Turn Into Aliens.’ Teen Girls Talk About Puberty.
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‘We Don’t Turn Into Aliens.’ Teen Girls Talk About Puberty.
From period pains and hip dips to bullying and catcalling, five girls talk about the trials of growing up.
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By Bronwen Parker-Rhodes
Ms. Parker-Rhodes is a documentary filmmaker.
Adolescence isn’t easy. With puberty comes immense mental and physical change — and a self-consciousness about how you and your body are observed, treated and understood. My previous Op-Docs shed light on what can be isolating about childbirth and menopause. But what’s left unsaid begins even earlier, when girls are often made to feel strange and ashamed about their bodies.
In the short film above, girls ages 14 to 17 open up about the excitement, confusion and anxiety of going through puberty today. What they share speaks not just to their peers — or parents — but to all women whose coming-of-age experiences went unacknowledged. I hope that rather than gloss over what happens during puberty, we can share it more openly.
Bronwen Parker-Rhodes is a filmmaker based in London. She previously directed the Op-Docs “Menopause Stories” and “After Birth.”
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