When I wrote Hunger Pains: The American Women s Tragic Quest for<br > Thinness in the 1980s， I was attempting to understand the epidemic of<br > eating disorders that had hit women in our community. I asked myself，<br >~ Why is this happening to so many women now? I found many answers<br > in an analysis of the culture and its message to women about weight<br > and beauty.<br > Reviving Ophelia is my attempt to understand my experiences in<br > therapy with adolescent girls. Many girls come into therapy with seri-<br > ous， even life-threatening problems， such as anorexia or the desire to<br > physically hurt or kill themselves. Others have problems less danger-<br > ous but still more puzzling， such as school refusal， underachievement，<br > moodiness or constant discord with their parents. Many are the vic-<br > tims of sexual violence.<br > As I talked to these girls， I became aware of how little I really<br >understood about the world of adolescent girls today. It didn t work<br >to use my own adolescent experience from the early 1960s to make<br >generalizations. Girls were living in a whole new world.<br > As a therapist， I often felt bewildered and frustrated. These feelings<br >led to questions: Why are so many girls in therapy in the 1990s? Why<br >are there more self-mutilators? What is the meaning Of lip， nose and<br >eyebrow piercings? How do I help thirteen-year-olds deal with herpes<br >or genital warts? Why are drugs and alcohol so common in the stories<br >of seventh-graders? Why do so many girls hate their parents?<br > Meanwhile my own daughter was in adolescence. She and her<br >friends were riding a roller coaster. Sometimes they were happy and<br >interested in their world; other times they just seemed wrecked. They<br >were hard on their families and each other. Particularly junior high<br >seemed like a crucible. Many confident， well-adjusted girls were trans-<br >formed into sad and angry failures.<br > Many of my friends had daughters in ado!escene， e. When we talked<br >we were confused， angry and unsure how to proceg~ Many of us felt<br >tormented by our daughters， who seemed upset wi~ .<br ><br >