Not sure if I’m getting too relaxed with the soon arrival of a desperately needed break, but I am about to surprise you and commend Dolly on a few things this issue, primarily features on anxiety and cyber dangers. 

A two page article on anxiety, ‘Anxiety Anonymous’, covers one of the major issues for tweens and teens today, an underlying factor in some of the most serious mental health illnesses including depression, eating disorders and self-harm.  Some have argued this is the most anxious generation of girls ever. Teachers at every school I’ve visited in the last month have observed that rates of anxiety seem to have skyrocketed in the last 12 months.  “Sadly, many adolescents are dealing with these paralysing feelings on a daily basis,” says Dolly.

The piece explains how the body reacts to anxiety, what triggers it, different types of anxiety (Generalised Anxiety Disorder, Social Anxiety, Phobia, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Panic Disorder) and symptoms. It helps girls recognise the difference between anxiety and being stressed out.  Tips for calming down are given: breathe, exercise, sleep, treat yourself and keep a journal. Youth Beyond Blue and Reach Out are listed as places girls can find help.

Also positive is an interview with Demi Lovato , ‘There’s not one type of beautiful’, who acknowledges her own mental health issues (self-harm, eating disorder). “At first I didn’t want anyone to know about it, but then I realised they were going to find out anyway so [I thought ] I might as well be honest. Once I started to open up I saw that I could help people by talking about my issues and it really helped the healing process,” she says. Asked what advice she would give readers with a friend who has a mental health issue, Demi replies “They should just be there for the person and be a good friend.” It’s important also that friends recommend professional help. Peer support is wonderful of course, but these complex mental health conditions need professional intervention as well.

While it is excellent that role models like Demi are honest about their mental health challenges, I would have liked to have seen more specifics on what she did to overcome these. But at least it’s a start. In her editorial, Dolly’s editor Tiffany Dunk also mentions her own struggle with depression since her late teens, which is to be commended.

Another critically important article is ‘The dot com danger zones’ asking readers how cyber-savvy they really are. “…a huge 68% of teens post personal content online, making them vulnerable to virtual dangers”.  A warning about sexting “If you’re under 18 and you take a photo or video of yourself in little or no clothing, or in a sexualised pose, this could be considered child pornography,” says Patrick Kelly, youth advisor for the Australian Federal Police. (I consider this a misapplication of the law, currently under review in a Victorian inquiry, but at present this is how things stands legally, so young people have a right to know).

Susan McLean, director of Cyber Safety Solutions, warns posting any kind of sexualised video is dangerous. “You’re exposing yourself to all the weird and creepy people in the world,” she says.  Many teens are treating YouTube like a personal diary, promoting warnings about revealing sensitive information.  Checking in on FB – making your current location known – can lead to real harm. An account is related of a 16-year-old who posted that she was with certain friends at a cinema. The abusive ex-boyfriend of one of the girls knew where to find her – and did. Tips are offered on protecting yourself online.

Other useful articles: how to get a job and earn your own money (note: show one’s children), how to be “the lucky” one (i.e bring good things your way): de-clutter your bedroom, hang around positive people, write down your goals, ‘Think lucky, act lucky’, watch your language(speak positively), say yes to opportunities, indulge in ‘positive visualisation’. While I’m all for helping girls see the bright side, the ‘think lucky’ approach concerns me…if bad things happen to a girl (as they often do) was she not thinking positively enough and not doing enough ‘positive visualisation’? Sometimes girls blame themselves when bad things happen to them.

Then there’s ‘Your before-20 bucket list’ which is mostly good, with suggestions like: go on exchange, learn to drive, get a pap smear, do work experience, save your money and visit your grandma. But why include ‘Make prank calls’ (Ok, not to triple ‘o’ but still, why include in a list like this?’) and ‘Go trick or treating’ and get a new hair make over. These are ‘before you turn 20’ life goals?

A page on how to find a good friend who is trustworthy, loyal, supportive, caring, respectful etc. demonstrates the importance of good friendships (somewhat undermined by the bucket list advice re prank calls that might embarrass them, a mere five pages beforehand). There’s a sweet piece titled ‘Why we love our dads’. Also positive is encouraging girls to ‘quit guilt’ around food, pointing out health benefits of dark chocolate, carbs, and ice cream, concluding “Guilt and shame can have harmful effects on your health, so if you’re going to have a treat, let go of those neg feelings and just enjoy it!”.

The real life stories are an odd mixture, e.g “I want to look like Lady Gaga” about 19-year-old Stephanie (‘Cypress Bay Lady Gaga’) appears side by side with “I’m helping find a cure for cancer” about Shree, 17, a “teen science genius who wowed the medical world with a groundbreaking new discovery in the search for a cure for cancer.” Her grandfather died of liver cancer – it was sitting by his bedside as a 14-year-old that the teen “decided to devote my life to curing cancer”. Ten years later she found a way to make diseased cells that were resisting cancer medication start responding. She also won a $50,000 scholarship at the 2011 Google Science Fair, ahead of 10,000 other applicants from 90 countries. At this rate I’ll end up reprinting the whole story…needless to say how great would it be to see more stories like this in Dolly. Another inspiring story is “I saved a mate from a Great White” about Elise, 19, who saved her friend Mike from a shark attack during a kayaking trip.

Of course, my colleagues and I haven’t forgiven Dolly for resurrecting its model search http://melindatankardreist.com/2012/07/teen-magazine-blows-its-cover-in-search-of-impossible-perfection/.  Kirsty Thatcher , 13 winner of the Original DOLLY Model Search, has her first blog this issue  with advice on giving a class presentation (“don’t be nervous that everyone is going to judge you”…except if you’re in Dolly’s model search?) The modelling theme continues with “Behind the scenes at Supermodel school” where Dolly “takes you inside a bootcamp for aspiring teen models in Los Angeles”.

“Fashion designers make clothes to fit one sample size. If you’re too tall or short, it just doesn’t look right”. Of course it would be too much to ask the designers to change, rather than tell girls they need to conform to a limited body type, wouldn’t it.  We hear from Michaela, a “tall, slender 13-year-old” and Stephanie a “redhead with an adorable smile” who is worried she’s too short. Then there’s Savannah with “her long legs and four-inch heels”.  I find myself wishing this article wasn’t the same length as the one on anxiety and longer than the piece on cyber-safety.

But all in all, I find myself commending Dolly this month for important pieces that could really help girls. Perhaps Dolly is trying harder? Let’s see what the next issues bring…

 

Melinda Tankard Reist