29/12/2025
Norma Swenson était une militante américaine de premier plan pour la santé des femmes et les soins à l’accouchement. Elle s’est fait connaître comme coautrice du livre Nos corps, nous-mêmes, qui abordait ouvertement le corps des femmes, la sexualité et la santé, et est devenu un best-seller mondial. Toute sa vie, elle s’est battue pour les droits des femmes lors de l’accouchement et pour des soins de santé plus respectueux, informés et de qualité.
Norma Swenson -- who transformed women's healthcare through her tireless advocacy and groundbreaking work with "Our Bodies, Ourselves," a revolutionary and comprehensive health resource that became a global bestseller by candidly addressing women's health from a female perspective -- was one of the Mighty Girl role models who died in 2025. After experiencing the harsh realities of contemporary childbirth practices firsthand when giving birth to her daughter in 1958, Swenson, who died in May at the age of 93, became a dedicated childbirth activist. She joined the Boston Women's Health Book Collective in 1971 and helped turn their grassroots publication into a global phenomenon. As she once powerfully stated, "Feminism is just another name for self-respect."
In 1960, only 6 percent of incoming medical students were female, creating a healthcare system dominated by men who often approached women's health with paternalism, condescension, and ignorance. This gender imbalance profoundly impacted all aspects of women's healthcare, particularly childbirth. In the 1950s, women typically delivered in crowded hospital wards under what Swenson described as barbaric conditions.
During childbirth, women were routinely administered Scopolamine, inducing "twilight sleep" and hallucinations, which led to many women being tied down with restraints; this was followed by Demerol, which knocked them unconscious while their babies were delivered by forceps. Swenson vividly recalled women "screaming, trying to climb out of their beds, calling for their mothers and cursing their husbands." She recognized that "these women weren't being helped, they were being controlled."
The seeds of "Our Bodies, Ourselves" were planted at a 1969 Boston women's liberation conference, where participants shared their disheartening medical experiences. Angered by male physicians' dismissive attitudes and frustrated by their own profound lack of basic knowledge about their bodies and health, these women began researching and documenting accurate information about female physiology and wellbeing. Their initial mimeographed booklet, released by a local press in 1970, resonated deeply with women nationwide, quickly becoming an underground phenomenon.
Swenson, by then an established advocate for natural childbirth and president of the Boston Association for Childbirth Education, connected with the collective during this transformative period. By 1971, as the project gained momentum and attracted attention from major publishers, Swenson had become an integral member of the group, bringing her expertise in childbirth advocacy to their expanding mission.
"Our Bodies, Ourselves" revolutionized women's health education by addressing previously taboo topics including sexuality, ma********on, birth control, and abortion. The book featured detailed illustrations and practical guidance, empowering women with knowledge about their own bodies that had been systematically withheld by a medical establishment dominated by men. After Simon & Schuster published an expanded version in 1973, it became a cultural touchstone, selling over four million copies and being translated into 34 languages. Barbara Ehrenreich called it "a manifesto of medical populism," while conservative groups deemed it obscene.
Swenson's impact extended far beyond American borders as she traveled globally, advising women's health groups and helping connect them with policymakers. "Women's voices are being heard, speaking about their needs and their experiences," she told The New York Times in 1985. "I find that enormously exciting." Though Swenson acknowledged that progress for women's health remained incomplete, she recognized the movement's critical importance: "It's not that things have so dramatically improved for women. But they'd be much worse if it were not for the pressure of the women's health movement. We are a presence now that cannot be made to disappear."
"Our Bodies, Ourselves" is still in print today and can be ordered at https://amzn.to/443bj0r (Amazon) and https://bookshop.org/a/8011/9781439190661 (Bookshop)
Fortunately, there are many affirming and informative resources to teach girls about their bodies-- one of our favorite puberty books "The Care and Keeping of You" is now available in two versions, one for younger girls ages 8 and up (https://www.amightygirl.com/the-care-and-keeping-of-you-1) and one for slightly older girls ages 10 and up (https://www.amightygirl.com/the-care-and-keeping-of-you-2)
For more books to help your Mighty Girl feel prepared - physically and emotionally - for the changes of puberty, visit our blog post, “A Time of Change: Talking with Tweens and Teens About Their Bodies” at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=11090
For many resources specifically related to preparing her for her first period - both books and first period kits - check out our blog post, "Teaching Your Mighty Girl About Her Menstrual Cycle," at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=11614
