Girls Thriving: In school. In sport. In life.

 

You can now find our pioneering coach, teacher and athlete resources at

www.TheWell-HQ.com

coming soon: Spark & Thrive programme

My unique ‘Spark & Thrive’ programme aims to empower girls to discover the best in themselves and fulfil their potential. I work to create a space for young women to explore who they are and what they can become. 

If knowledge is power, then I am certain that knowledge of self is empowering.  This unique 8-week programme supports girls to be confident architects of their own wellbeing, happiness and success. The course covers:

Knowing and nourishing your spark

Everyone has a spark. Something that gives you energy and joy, and expresses the essence of who you are. Research shows that young people who have deep interests, ‘sparks’, and are supported by family, friends, school, and community in the development of those passions have more interpersonal communication and friend-making skills, more empathy and understanding of others’ feelings, a better ability to work in teams and better psychological well-being and resilience.

Knowing and developing your character

Rather than asking young people what they want to ‘do’ when they grow up, I ask them what type of person they want to be and become.  Adolescents often struggle with identity, so I support young women to recognise what values they hold, how they can live into those values, rather than just naming them and how they can stay true to them when things get hard.

I explore whether girls are different from boys when it comes to empathy, humility and emotional intelligence, and bust some myths that hold young women back.

Knowing and experiencing your body

Most girls enter adulthood woefully uneducated about their bodies. I know, because I have taught hundreds of twenty-somethings the things they say they wished they’d known in their early teens.  Like what actually happens inside your body during your menstrual cycle, and how that biology is linked to how you feel and behave? What does good menstrual health, breast health and pelvic health look and feel like in young women? What is it like to feel confident in your body? How do our bodies and our biology change across our life as a woman?

Knowing and realising your potential

What does equality and feminism mean to the young women of today and what do they perceive as the barriers to their lifelong health, happiness and success? How can they become ambassadors of change in their communities and peer groups? What skills do young women need in the world of work, and how do we develop them?

The course has been developed through my own experience supporting the world’s best female athletes to thrive, as a women’s health and wellbeing educator, a research scientist, and a high performance leader. It is informed by world leading research and concepts developed by psychologists, social science and women’s health researchers, business leaders, activists and writers.

The programme can be tailored for delivery to groups from 12 to 18 years.

support for teachers, coaches & girls

This workshop can be tailored for teachers or coaches of girls, for both Dads and Mum’s to understand more about puberty in daughters, or to empower young women with new knowledge of what is happening in their physiology during puberty, and how that affects their emotions and behaviours.

Workshops can cover

  • The menstrual cycle as a vital sign of health

  • The biology of the menstrual cycle at menarche (when periods start)

  • How periods and cycles might change over the first few years after starting

  • The influence of hormonal fluctuations through the menstrual cycle on our physiology, our emotions and behaviour.

  • Managing menstrual cycle symptoms

  • Breast development and breast support

  • Periods and sport in adolescents

  • Managing menstruation – period products

  • Reducing the anxiety and anguish around periods in young girls

  • Tapping into the power of the menstrual cycle

  • Hormonal contraceptives

Supporting Parents of Daughters

Puberty can be confusing and stressful for adolescent girls and their parents. In this session I talk through what happens during this time, and how a young woman’s biology is changing and what effect it can have on her emotions and behaviour.

This is also a time that girls drop out of sport and psychical activity at twice the rate of boys. What things can parents do to support a lifelong love of movement in their daughters?

Parent’s tell me they leave this session empowered to talk more openly to their children about what is happening to girls during puberty, and how to support her, and each other, through this time.