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Raunch Culture

Creating Un-real Expectations for Women

by Melissa Gonella |Sep 5, 2015 | Women's Health

Raunch culture is a term which is also known as a ‘sexualised culture’.  When I first heard this term my eldest daughter was just a tweenie and I was arming myself with as much knowledge about how to facilitate raising empowered and strong young women as I possibly could.  In my research I found out that predominately, the raunch culture values women as a commodity.  I began to question the cost that this is having on the health and well-being for women.

There are two sides to the debate the other being that raunch expression of oneself is an empowering experience and celebration of who we are, just as we are.  But unfortunately the lines often become blurred, and the differences between raunch expression and empowered sexuality can be polls apart.  Women can find themselves in the dangerous place of believing that to express their sexuality they must involve publicly objectify their bodies.

This emergence in our culture is changing the way women are perceived by themselves and also impacts the perception men have of women too.  Young women are particularly vulnerable falling into the trap of expressing themselves in a sexualised way thought their social media portals.  It’s affecting their self-esteem, triggering things like anxiety, depression and eating disorders.  These abnormalities of feelings and behaviors are scarring our young women and I have seen many in clinic who are battling with the symptoms that continue to impact them many years on.

Older women are not immune either.  Fighting against the normal aging process is also a representation of how women are impacted by the experience of their body’s as they change and the way they value themselves as a consequence.

When a woman of any age bases her sense of self on something external, such as the way she looks or judges the way someone else looks, there is an interruption to the connection she has with her own authentic power.  Women who believe that their power is linked to the ability to look and act young will meet up against this incompleteness again and again throughout their lifetime.  

It is important that as women we claim our strength from the inner landscape of who we are so that we can model this for our girls navigating the media and a commodity driven society.  By all means keep fit by pole dancing, but do it because it is a body fitness that you desire and not an external image. 

Melissa supports the foundation of finding the true expression of your sexuality that is both authentic and powerful. 

This is not based on big business sales, the right hair colour, but upon finding your own truth and connecting to that wisdom. 

Here are some other articles and websites which talk about a impact a Raunch Culture has; 

Melissa Gonella

Melissa Gonella is a Neuro-Trainer and a Kinesiologist with a special interest in women’s health and well-being.  Her practice is located in Eltham, Melbourne, Australia.  She is a facilitator of the popular mother and daughter workshop, Celebration Day for Girls™ and Father’s Celebrating Daughters™.