LSU mothers struggling with raising their Tiger cubs may want to seek advice from Laura Choate, professor of counselor education in the LSU College of Human Sciences and Education, who wrote “Swimming Upstream: Parenting Girls for Resilience in a Toxic Culture.”
The book, which was published on Monday, examines the societal pressures placed on young girls and how parents can help them maneuver through their adolescence, Choate said. Information in “Swimming Upstream” comes from psychological research and counseling tactics.
“Swimming Upstream” is the fourth book Choate has had published in addition to 40 other smaller publications. Most of her work is connected to the topic of women’s and girls’ mental health. Choate’s other research interests include college student wellness and counselor preparation for all ages.
In 2013, Choate finished her book “Adolescent Girls in Distress: a Guide to Mental Health Prevention and Treatment,” geared toward counselors helping treat girls’ mental health problems. After it was published, she said she realized parents needed the same types of resources at counselors’ disposal. It was then she decided to write a new book geared toward parents’ perspective. Choate said she first became concerned with girls’ issues after the birth of her daughter.
In the book, Choate recounts several personal examples from the journey of parenting her two children.
“It wasn’t until I was a mother of a daughter, myself, that I really started to observe how harmful the current culture can be for girls’ development and mental health,” Choate said. “I want all parents to be aware of these trends, and I want to give them strategies to help their daughters develop resilience.”
Choate said parents need to be aware of how American culture is more toxic for girls than in the past. She said most pressure on girls comes from the three A’s, outlined in the book: a girl’s appearance, their ability to get attention and their accomplishments.
In her research, Choate said many girls don’t know how to put their stress into words, but parents can help them understand what is happening to them by reading “Swimming Upstream.”
Students on LSU’s campus who are also mothers could benefit from the book, she said.
“If a mother is still a girl herself, I would say it is even harder to protect her daughter from cultural pressures while she is still living it all out herself,” Choate said. “… The book might help them to recognize what they are struggling with, what they really want for themselves and for their daughters, and how they can provide that knowledge, empathy, and love to themselves as well as their daughters.”