“I’m in Between”

How do young African American girls, in this study, discuss and define their health? What does health mean to them? What stories do they tell about their mothers and grandmothers? What kinds of health inheritances have they received from their mothers and maternal grandmothers? Do they perceive any barriers to their health? If so, what are they? What has been their experience with medical providers? Rarely is there an opportunity to delve deeply into how young African American girls perceive their health and the health care that they receive. This chapter explores daughters’ perceptions of their health and their mothers’ health, their barriers to health, and experiences with medical providers. It explores the nature of communication about their health between them and their mothers. Although many of the daughters have been exposed to a great deal of health information and health-care access, they often do not view or experience themselves as healthy. Their narratives also indicate areas of strength and resilience in girls’ awareness of the media’s role in circulating unrealistic gendered images.