Two Sunshine Coast women are hoping to help young girls find their own empowered sense of self love as they navigate their tricky teenage years.
GRLTLK, or Girl Talk, is the shared vision of Sarhan Allen and Aelish Healy, who hope to use their own experiences to support teenage girls to reconnect back to self-love, health and wellbeing through a 10-week program.
Ms Allen, who is a personal trainer and wellness coach, says the program is something she wishes was around when she was younger.
“We reflect on when we were teenagers and how much we would have thrived if we had this sort of support and knowledge,” she says.
“I struggled with severe anxiety depression and an eating disorder. I was very disconnected as a child and went through a lot of health challenges and mental challenges.
“Reflecting now on the tools I have access to it makes sense to share this to the younger generation, but in a way that keeps it light-hearted and joyful but articulated.
“There is a lot of information out there these days and I think it’s important to keep it simple.
“We’ve walked that path ourselves and have come out the other side and we are so grateful to be able to share that wisdom with other girls.
“I can’t even imagine the ripples it will create for teenagers to connect back to their self-love and be able to look in the mirror and say ‘I love you’ to yourself.”
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It is a similar story for Ms Healy, who is a learning guide with a passion for helping the community. She had to overcome the challenge of losing her father at a young age.
The friends hope the program, which is targeted at girls aged 12 to 16, will act as a safe and nurturing space that focuses on three core pillars: connection, movement and breath.
“The connection pillar is supporting the girls in understanding their body and learning about their menstrual cycle,” Ms Allen says.
“A lot of the time we don’t really understand it, even as women until we start to do our own research around it, and it’s such an important part of a female’s life.”
Ms Allen will use her professional background to guide teens through the second pillar, movement, teaching them about yoga, Pilates and mindful activity to support and healthy lifestyle.
“The final pillar is the breath, which we see as important in empowering our youth on learning how to breathe efficiently through the nose,” Ms Allen says.
“It helps to increase their sleep and their focus at school; it comes back to that connection of ourselves in creating more presence and understanding and communicating our emotions.”
The first of the term-based programs begin on February 7. There is hope that the program will be expanded in the future to cater for primary school-aged girls and young women aged 17 to 21.
GRLTLK will be held at Exalto Holistic Hub in Warana.
Enrol at grltlksc.com