How Can I Help My Daughter?: A Mother's Guide to Nurturing her Daughter's Best Self

Dr. Marcy Forta has gifted mothers with an invaluable tool with which to guide their daughters through the process of developing a healthy self image. This book addresses the social, cultural, emotional, genetic and educational forces that can obscure optimal growth and provides a holistic approach to gently nurture our girls into developing a healthy sense of self. A must read for every mother raising daughters in today’s world.Sara Eisemann, LMSWDirector of Education, Core

Dr. Forta presents a clear and concise primer to body image, diet culture and eating disorders that is helpful for any parent or educator to read, but is particularly sensitive to and tailored for the Jewish community. It includes helpful understandings and examples of ways of thinking and speaking that can be challenging for anyone, but may be disastrous for those within the eye of a perfect storm. As she explains, "genetics load the gun, but circumstances pull the trigger". She shows us where the trigger may lie so that we can either avoid it or disarm it if we sense we are close. Additionally, she has checklists of signs and symptoms to raise a parent's awareness, or when several signs are seen, to raise a red flag so that a parent will know to seek the help that is needed.Since, as Dr. Forta explains, eating disorders affect the Jewish community at rates much higher than the community surrounding us, it behooves everyone who cares for, or about, girls and young women to learn more about how to prevent, spot and respond to eating disorders. This book is a great first step in that direction.

Dr Forta's book is an important work, filled with information, resources and compassion for the real issue of eating disorders in the Jewish world. The author obviously knows what she is talking about, combining information from studies and real-life scenarios to reinforce the issues and offering the reader real solutions in a way that is both accessible and useful. I learned so much from reading this book and I'm confident that others will too.

a book like this is a must for every Jewish parent to read! It's about time we have a book on these such important issues facing all Jewish girls, teens and women!! We all want our girls to grow up healthy physically & emotionally with good self esteem and self worth , this book is perfect...