COCONUT CREEK, Fla. — It’s not easy growing up, but a new state report suggests it can be especially rough for girls.
A panel of experts gathered in Coconut Creek Saturday to discuss how parents and society can help girls handle the pressures they face today.
“We have to give them every opportunity possible,” said one panelist.
For more than a century, the Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. has focused on helping girls “be prepared.” Moms like Emilia Vilaire-Monchery appreciate the support.
“To show my girls that they are not alone, and the challenges that they may face or are facing, there is a whole host of girls out there but that there is also a whole host of support,” Vilaire-Monchery said.
Vilaire-Monchery is also the senior director of community impact and education initiatives at the United Way of Broward County. She said she knows what her girls want most.
“Our children want our time, they don’t always want our presence and our money, but they want our time, they want our attention,” Vilaire-Monchery said.
The new state Florida Girl Report found among high school girls:
- 52% feel sad or hopeless.
- 1 in 4 seriously considered suicide, twice as many as boys.
- Compared with boys, twice as many girls are victims of cyberbullying.
Vilaire-Monchery said one finding stood out.
“Our girls are feeling higher pressures to perform well academically, but are actually underperforming on tests and things and I think anxiety is at play,” she said.
For attendees, listening to the panel was a Saturday well spent. The report said girls in Florida face higher levels of violence, higher rates of substance use, and growing mental and emotional health challenges.
So how can parents help?
“If we start from the root of the problem and we start with breathing exercises and even just little words of encouragement, that can really help someone,” said Girl Scout teen Gabriella Daise.
Daise also shared a tip for girls.
“Let’s start with the positive, let’s say ok maybe I didn’t do so well today, lets try to do better next time to see how I can improve on, instead of just negative negative negative,” she said.
Read the full report here:
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