Learning from Girls and Women about the Power of Self-Acceptance in Development of the Sexual Self

One's sexual self is a lifelong work-in-progress. We gather information and various bits of experience and, a step at a time, incorporate these into an integrated sexual self image. Many of us continue to develop understanding and acceptance of our sexuality and of our capacity for sexual pleasure throughout our lives. Self-acceptance and a clear sense of sexual self give us power for creating and choosing our relationships and forms of sexual expression.

The foundations for adult sexuality are established in childhood. This presentation will address some of the milestones in the sexual development of women and girls that free them to accept themselves and their own experiences. It is based on in-depth interviews of women ages 20-90 and data from 2,632 women who completed the nationally-distributed, 16-page Ellison/Zilbergeld Sexuality of Women Survey.