TED Heads and Why I Love TED Talks

Giving birth to (business) twins! EXCITING NEWS! READ ALL ABOUT IT!

Dear WCC Community,

So, I have REALLY EXCITING news to share with you! 

The Women's Collaborative Circle is growing by LEAPS and BOUNDS! So much so that the WCC (as a brand, business, and organization) has bursted into two!  Well, not quite bursted, but has gone through a strategically planned rebranding and development to bring you TWO new business to best serve your needs ;) 

 

First, let me say that your dedication and commitment to the development of the WCC has meant the world to me!  Because of your support and generosity, I have been able to connect, work with, and serve women locally and globally. Because of your time and energy, I have been able to further grow the vision of the WCC and introduce you to the next level of women's self-care, empowerment, and social change.  

 

I am thrilled to announce the soon-to-be launch of Woman Centered - a personal development and social action organization.  Woman Centered empowers forward thinking women to actively effect change within themselves and in the world around them.  Woman Centered will be offering 1:1 mentoring services, special events, programs, resources, and SO MUCH MORE! YAY! The site is set to launch in another few weeks, so stay tuned!

 

I am equally excited to announce the development of my specialized psychotherapy practice for women.  Dr. Carly Goldberg - Therapy for Women. My private practice offers a dedicated space for women to receive in person psychotherapy services to meet the needs of women's psychological development and emotional wellness.  For more information, please visit www.drcarlygoldberg.com.  

... Wow!  I feel like I just birthed twins! ;) 

As I finish the final touches on both new websites, I want you to know that I am developing this with all of you in mind.  I can not wait for us to further grow as a community and create long lasting change within ourselves, our families, communities, and world around us! 

Please feel free to reach out, let me know your thoughts, feedback, or just say hello! 

With deepest gratitude,

Carly 

Carly Goldberg, DSW, LCSW

www.drcarlygoldberg.com

www.womancentered.org

My Body, Not Yours!

                                    

Genderqueer Support Group - Studio 34

GENDERQUEER

SUPPORT GROUP

Feeling at odds with the gender binary system?

Looking for a safe space to explore your

gender identity?

Want to connect with others who

understand your experience? 

JOIN US!

7-8:30pm Biweekly Wednesdays, Start Date TBA

Studio 34 Yoga/Healing/Arts

4522 Baltimore Avenue

$300 for 10 sessions

Discussion topics include:

pronouns, passing, public bathrooms, family, relationships, sex, sexual identity and much more.

Facilitated by Marcie J. Wood, MA., MFT,

Individual, Relationship and Sex Therapist in Private Practice.

For more information or to register, please contact Marcie at 215-514-5766 or info@marciejwood.com

Stop Blaming, Start Educating - Catholic Identity and Abortion

As a woman and a Catholic, I'm very frustrated that diocesan churches preach the evils and horrors of abortion rather than teach ways to use love, care, and education to prevent unplanned or unwanted pregnancies or find loving homes for unwanted babies.  My fiance and I have discussed this at length and how being pro-choice both fits into our Catholic identity and does not make us pro-abortion.  I support a woman's right to choose, but I think we, as a society, could be doing more.

After much discussion with my fiancé, we have come up with an idea to reduce the abortion rate, thus creating a culture of life that is centered around Christ's primary teaching - love.  Neither of us have any experience in running a non-profit, though we both have volunteer experience, so this is where, hopefully, a blog can help us recruit others to help us with our mission. We are not sure what we would call our organization, but here is what we are all about.

First we would like to give boys and girls more education about sex before and during the onset of puberty, ideally between 4th and 7^th grade.  Sexuality is not something for children to be embarrassed or ashamed of, rather it is a part of how we identify ourselves and should be valued in all people.  Children need to be taught anatomically correct language and accurate scientific information regarding pregnancy.  Children should also be taught how to correctly use condoms and birth control, and told (*not taught because there isn't anything to teach besides one sentence) that the only way to 100% prevent unwanted or unplanned pregnancy is to practice abstinence.  I believe condoms and birth control should be used but that we need to break the myth that they are 100% effective.  Speaking from experience, I have a friend with three children who became pregnant with two of her children while she was on birth control, not knowing that their effectiveness decreases when taking other prescription drugs.

Second, we would like to empower young men and women to communicate their sexual wishes, or as I like to call it, teaching girls how to say "No means no."  This also means making females aware of situations that increase vulnerability that can lead to unwanted sexual contact or rape such as alcohol and or drug consumption, peer pressure, or being alone or isolated from peers.  This area also includes teaching young men what constitutes consensual sex versus what they are seeing in the media.  It also means viewing females as equals in terms of wants and desires, relating to the previous blog post about the misrepresentation of women.

The third and final area is dealing with unwanted or unplanned pregnancies in a way that fosters the female's mental health and physical health.  Domestic adoptions can be made more accessible (though I know little on this topic) and clinics that offer prenatal care can also offer free counseling services and access to networks. Young pregnant women can be partnered up with a mentor who can offer them advice on child-rearing and realistically discuss finances and family involvement.  Regardless of what young women decide, they need to know that we are a country that takes care of each other and that
their child's life is one of value.

In conclusion, this is not just a women's issue.  It is political, social, community based and media influenced.  A recent article in the New York Times (Feb. 17, 2012) by Jason Deparle and Sabrina Tavernise stated that 52% of babies born today in this country to women under 30 are to single women.  The study also cites major racial and educational imbalances related to this number.  As a nation, we need to stop passing the blame and start educating and taking action to help one another.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Deanna is a an early childhood educator with a degree in Communication from Temple University and a Masters in Education from Arcadia University.  She lives in Ardmore, PA.  For more information, please feel free to contact us at hello@womenscollaborativecircle.org and we will pass along your interests, thoughts and ideas to Deanna and her fiance Brian! 

That’s MY Baby

The joy of becoming a new mother is a completely amazing and miraculous feeling.  Your body goes through metamorphosis and your emotions go along for the ride.  You are on an extreme high one day and a miserable low the other.  The upbeat “work professional” image I had constructed went straight out the door; as I was suddenly overcome with urge to say exactly what I was feeling at any given moment.  Conversely, I had an uncontrollable need to let the tears pour out at random commercials and sappy love songs. 

At the end of the nine-month process, you have co-created a new life and it’s a glorious process.  Over the next few months, you bond with your baby and relish at all her milestones.  The thought of leaving your child for even a moment seems unimaginable…. Nevertheless, you know that that time will come, so you enjoy every second with your child.

It was important for my partner and I for one of us to stay home with our daughter for the first year and that person was me, due to my totally crap job and poor employment choices.  Then I became an awesome “full-time” mom, but the cost of living on one income in one of the most over-priced cities in the US was starting to take a toll on us and our finances.

No sweat, I’ll just go back to work… during the worst economy or country has known in over a generation.  Great!

Miraculously I was able to secure a job working for a great organization within walking distance from our home.   Then the daunting task of finding care for my child became a 24/7 research project.  I interviewed nannies, visited countless daycares and in a moment of insanity, considered moving my mom to the state to provide fulltime care.

In the end, I found a wonderful daycare close to home. Given that my daughter has spent nearly 100% of her time with one or both of her parents, I thought she would have some sort of mental fit; and I would be around to come a retrieve her for the care provider.  I decided to enroll my daughter a week early as a mutual trial for all parties.  

I drop her off on a cloudy Monday morning, and thought I would go home and read and do some cleaning.  In my mind, I was waiting for the call to console my baby who missed me senselessly.  I waited – no call.

When we went to pick her up on her first day, she was laughing and playing with the others babies.  I thought to myself, “good – she enjoys being here.”  As the week progressed, my daughter was becoming adjusted quite easily, me on the other hand, I was going through some sort of psychologically breakdown (yet again).  My daughter is moving on and what does that mean for me? 

On the last day of her first week, I dropped her off and she smiled at her care provider and rested her head on her shoulder.  My heart broke, I mean she rarely does that for me and now this woman has reached that level in less than a week. 

Then the realization of motherhood kicked me in the butt.  I realized that she is my daughter and therefore, we will always have a special bond, but she will also make new relationships throughout the course of her life.  The relationship with her care provider is just the first of many new relationships.  I am happy that she is a loving, open child. 

Now that she is happy and secure, I will focus on my new work and the ever-evolving nature of motherhood.

About CC our guest blog contributor. Former community organizer, worked for SEIU, CHANGE (Industrial Areas Foundation), Leadership Conference on Civil Rights.  She is an active blogger, writing about personal stories and reflections on various topics relating to race, class and gender issues at www.causereaction.blogspot.com.