Normalizing Female Empowerment

Image source: www.overthinkingit.com

I share about my life journey because I want to normalize female empowerment. Even in my small, not-seen-by-many, mini corner of social media and this life journey blog, I hope to have some small influence on someone, anyone, about what it is to be female, what it looks like for a woman to come into her own power (physical, emotional, and otherwise), and to add to media representation of women.

I am tired of the female tropes. Whether about age, ethnicity, marital or economic status, what have you, I don't see myself represented in media. There are few female women in their 40s who are represented in film and TV, who are shown to be strong, complex, and happy women. And if they are at all seen in media, they are never the main character, usually some sad/funny caricature, supporting foil of a character to "add to the story".

Even looking for other women on social media who are on a similar health journey as I am, who are in their mid-40s, they are all athletes, sports models, or fitness trainers, which speaks to a different motivation for their accomplishments (and sometimes there is plastic surgery and/or performance enhancement supplements and/or photoshop at play).

The world has been so developed with the male gaze and on the male experience that even medical research is scarce about women entering menopause. It's no wonder there are so few female stories in media, there's very little factual literature focused on real women and their life journeys (Remember when NASA asked if female astronaut, Sally Ride, needed 100 tampons for six days? - it's so cringey).

I'm just an average, professional woman, who's taken charge of her health. And I'm in a healthy and loving relationship, I'm a single mother, I'm Asian-Canadian, and I'm happy.

Perhaps that latest one is the one we definitely don't see in media: A complex woman (i.e. intelligent with emotional depth), coming into her power, AND she's happy. Not everyone has to be on a "Hero's Journey" to achieve happiness/self-actualization/emancipation, etc., but it would be refreshing to see different and empowered women stories.

There is a small shift happening in media which has me intrigued. For example with Reese Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine production company which focuses on female storylines. Interesting stories about women are starting to be made, though still very much in the minority and not blockbuster status. I was a little concerned that Hello Sunshine was recently sold to Blackstone, which is male-led, as there is a large risk of those female stories turning into the same old, status quo. Another interesting production shift is the Nicole Kidman, Lianne Moriarty, and David Kelley trifecta that has produced several TV mini-series recently, all of which are female-led stories. I look forward to more women's stories being made into film and TV as I believe it will be a tidal wave of change in storytelling and our shared social consciousness. A small note is that most of the stories that are coming out now about women in movies and TV are still hetero-normative and focused on white women in the lead, and I'll just leave that there.

I know that in posting my workouts, I've influenced some people to buy punching bags (for themselves or their children) and for others to start running, and that validates my small efforts. It may seem small and insignificant, but I don't think it is. I can tell you how powerful it was for me and my children to see the first Asian represented in a Marvel superhero movie "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings". Representation matters on so many levels. Inspiration and motivation can come from anywhere and I am not a unicorn. I'm just trying to shine a light on something not normally seen: women doing it for themselves, being happy, and redefining what that looks like. I'm also a seeker, looking for others on this same journey, in pursuit of stories that enlighten about the authentic female empowerment experience.