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I've been there and done that. I'm the poster child for the hormone-infested years of adolescence.

Growing up is tough. You already know that, so I'm not going to reinforce a subject that's already familiar to you.

The teenage years are a crazy ride. I'm happy they're over, but I had the best years of my life during adolescence. It's a time when you are neither a child nor adult. You're at an awkward plateau where you seek freedom from the ties that hold you down and attention to make sure that you're not forgotten.

We all mess up and make mistakes in life, and that's what growing up is about. But we all need guidance. I know that I often look back and think about everything I've experienced. From sneaking out with boys, to road-tripping it to Canada and New York City without telling my parents, to having house parties, my first "love," and my first hard breakup. But no matter what the situation was, I loved telling my mom the story at the end of the day, or when I felt that she would laugh until she cried. I wanted her to be there in the moment with me.

I'm nineteen and it's so weird for me to admit to this and get heart-to-heart about my younger teen years. But I never wanted to listen to my mom for advice. It was too hard to go to her and it was way too hard to confide in her. But now I consider my mom a friend of mine. I tell her mostly everything. She'll listen and often still give advice…Most of the time I don't take it right away but I do use it eventually because I know that ultimately she's right.

My mom is really special because she's not just any mom; she's Dr. Linda Bradley, the author of Teen Sisters' Health. She's seen thousands of women, old and young, and has heard all sorts of stories. Her wealth of information from life experience is amazing. And I know that her journey with me growing up has added a lot to TEEN SISTERS' HEALTH. Because, although this book contains many experiences that I haven't personally had, in some ways I feel that it's a paper version of my mother's and my journey through adolescence.

Now that I'm a little older, I want other girls to have the great advice that I was offered. So enjoy TEEN SISTERS' HEALTH. Use it as a reference and think of my mom as your mom, too.

Kathleen Adams is a leader who actively promotes women's social and reproductive rights and the rights of people who are LGBTQ*.  

*Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered and Questioning

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