July 8th August 1st, 2010.
Young women today are faced with ever-expanding choices, freedoms and opportunities to self-sabotage. The life transition between adolescence and adulthood has become muddied and complicated for young women, who need confidence and a sense of who they are in order to bridge it successfully. The media and its messages, peer pressure, sex vs. abstinence debates, body image questions, and the gender gap all impact girls in ways that are insidious and undermine their personal spirit and strength.
We are launching this course for young women in response to the epidemic numbers of them searching for their personal power. We are committed to guide and mentor each of our participants so they can walk with confidence down a path that leads to personal power, positive self-esteem and pride in one's innate, individual gifts.
Outdoor expeditions--such as hiking, mountain-biking, rafting/canoeing, and peak climbs--encourage participants to challenge themselves physically and build esteem from adventurous exercise. Between expeditions, these youngsters share residence, meal preparation, meaningful work activities and join in the camaraderie, unique support and accountability of a wide group of women.
With a fusion of activities: outdoor adventure; individual therapy; group counseling; mentoring, education; and service to other women immersed in crisis, our participants face self-imposed limitations in a variety of modalities. Students complete a strengths-based assessment and inventory their primary challenges they face as a young woman in today's world. We use information gathered from our participants to guide educational seminars throughout the course that are taught by wise women.
This course focuses on a series of different topics every few days. From an initial self assessment of "Who am I and why am I here?" the program moves on to help the teen understand basic self-care issues like health, nutrition, sleep and others. The program also will work with students to explore their emotions and stress, and how they are intertwined with alcohol and substance abuse and other negative behaviors.
The course will help the women learn stress management skills and effective communication styles, and how to employ them in the family and with their peers. They also will examine intimacy issues associated with teens, and look at how abuse, violence, and co-dependent relationships--both in their own lives and families and in that of others--can affect their perceptions and their own relationships as they mature.
Our students will study historical and societal women's issues, and learn to identify positive role models, and look to them for support and guidance. Towards the end of the program, the women will begin to adapt what they are learning to develop the needed life skills for their particular situations, to set goals and practice leaderships skills.
All of this will be combined with appropriate therapeutic support, regular self-assessments and journaling, quizzes and practical assignments. The program will end with a solo trip that will develop self esteem and a sense of personal accomplishment as the student works to integrate new-found inner strengths with practical outdoors skills.
This one-of-a-kind offering is limited and available to young women, 16-19, who are willing to open themselves to growth, change and an awareness of their own personal power.
