With The Women's Collective, our intention is to unite in sisterhood, share insights, celebrate our growth, and evolve together with integrity and honesty. We have collected a broad list of resources that have been valuable to our growth and hopefully to yours too. This list is ever-growing and will be adjusted as we continue to find new material to share. 

If you have any recommendations, feel free to share them with us via Instagram @thewomenscollective_ . We love to hear from you!

BOOKS

MENSTRUATION 
  1. Wild Power: Discover the Magic of Your Menstrual Cycle and Awaken the Feminine Path to Power by Alexandra Pope 
  2. The Period Repair Manual by Lara Briden 
  3. Red Moon Gang: An Inclusive Guide to Periods by Tara Costello
SEXUAL AWAKENING
  1. Come as You Are: The Surprising New Science that Will Transform Your Sex Life by Emily Nagoski Ph.D.
  2. This Is Your Brain on Birth Control: The Surprising Science of Women, Hormones, and the Law of Unintended Consequences by Sarah Hill, Ph.D.
  3. Yes Means Yes!: Visions of Female Sexual Power and A World Without Rape by Jaclyn Friedman and Jessica Valenti
  4. The Ethical Slut: A Practical Guide to Polyamory, Open Relationships & Other Adventures by Janet W. Hardy
  5. Girls & Sex: Navigating the Complicated New Landscape by Peggy Orenstein
  6. The Big O: An Empowering Guide to Loving, Dating, and F**king by Oloni
    She Comes First: The Thinking Man’s Guide to Pleasuring a Woman by Ian Kerner, Ph.D.
  7. Bliss Club: Sex Tips for Creative Lovers by Jüne Plã
  8. Every Body: An Honest and Open Look at Sex from Every Angle by Julia Rothman and Shaina Feinberg
FERTILITY + CONTRACEPTION 
  1. The Fifth Vital Sign: Master Your Cycles & Optimize Your Fertility by Lisa Hendrickson-Jack
  2. Taking Charge of your Fertility by Toni Weschler
  3. The Hormone Balance Bible: A Holistic Plan to Create Lifelong Health by Shawn Tassone, MD
  4. Beyond the Pill: A 30-Day Program to Balance Your Hormones, Reclaim Your Body, and Reverse the Dangerous Side Effects of the Birth Control Pill by Jolene Brighten, ND
HEALTH + ANATOMY 
  1. Vagina: A Re-education Paperback by Enright, Lynn
  2. A Celebration of Vulva Diversity by Hilde Atalanta
  3. Undivided Rights: Women of Color Organizing for Reproductive Justice by Jael Silliman, Marlene Gerber Fried, Loretta Ross, Elena Gutiérrez
  4. The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk, M.D.
SELF-LOVE + BODY IMAGE
  1. All about love by Bell Hooks
  2. Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead by Brené Brown
  3. Untamed by Glennon Doyle
  4. The Beauty Myth: How Images of Beauty Are Used Against Women by Naomi Wolf
  5. Women Who Run With the Wolves: Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype by Clarissa Pinkola Estes 
  6. Women Don’t Owe You Pretty by Florence Given
  7. Burn Out: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cyclce by Amelia Nagowski
  8. Men Explain Things To Me by Rebecca Solnit

Movies

  1. Period. End of Sentence.(2019)  — An Oscar-winning documentary that started inspired a movement. The short film tells the story of a rural village outside Delhi, India, where women led a quiet sexual revolution. They fought against the deeply rooted stigma of menstruation by learning to manufacture and market their own pads, empowering the women of their community. 
  2. The Business of Birth Control (2021) — Sixty years after the pill revolutionized women's emancipation, The Business of Birth Control examines the complex relationship between hormonal birth control and women’s health and liberation
  3. Sex, Explained (2020) — From the biology of attraction to the history of birth control, explore the ins and outs of sex in this entertaining and enlightening series.
  4. The Principles of Pleasure (2022) — Sex, joy and modern science converge in this eye-opening series that celebrates the complex world of women's pleasure - and puts old-fashioned myths to rest.
  5. Orgasm, Inc.: The Strange Science of Female Pleasure (2009) – A look at the science and business behind the pleasure of women and the race towards developing an FDA-approved Viagra for women.
  6. Business of Being Born (2008) – A documentary that explores the childbirth experience within the US healthcare system. An honest and intimate look at the medicalization of childbirth through lived experiences.
  7. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (2017) – An honest look into the controversy that came with the immortalization of Henrietta Lacks’ cells without her consent, creating dialogue around the role of race, gender, and advocacy.
  8. Major! (2015) – The story of one woman’s journey, a community’s history, and how caring for each other can be a revolutionary act. A documentary about miss Major Griffin-Gracy, a black transgender elder and activist.

Educators

  1. Dr. Zhana Vrangalova, Ph.D. (@drzhana): Renowned non/monogamy expert and sexuality and relationships scientist. 
  2. Ruby Rare (@rubyrare): A queer non-monogamous, dual-heritage sex educator
  3. Dr. Lara Briden (@larabriden): A naturopathic doctor focusing on women’s health. She creates guides for treating period problems with nutrition, supplements, and bioidentical hormones. 
  4. Jenna Longoria (@theperiodguru): A Board Certified Functional Nutrition practitioner focusing on hormone and period problems 
  5. Chloe Skerlak (: Holistic Reproductive Health Practitioner & Full Spectrum Fertility Awareness Educator 
  6. Shawn Tassone (@shawntassonemd): An OBGYN with a focus on Integrative Medicine 
  7. Gigi Engle (@gigiengle): A sex educator and award-winning author

Mobile Apps + Websites

  1. Kama Lab: a mobile app that offers sexual wellness practices that improve how you experience love, sex, and intimacy 
  2. OmgYes.com: A course that offers an honest, informative, research-based approach to women’s pleasure
  3. Dipsea: Sexy audio stories and intimate wellness sessions

REFERENCES

Research studies, papers, and health information providers referenced in the card game. 

  1. Mayo Clinic Staff, (2021, April 29). Menstrual cycle: What's normal, what's not. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/womens-health/in-depth/menstrual-cycle/art-20047186

  2. How Much Plastic is in Period Pads? https://www.natracare.com/blog/how-much-plastic-in-period-pads/ 

  3. Winer, S. A., & Rapkin, A. J. (2006). Premenstrual disorders: prevalence, etiology and impact. The Journal of reproductive medicine, 51(4 Suppl), 339–347.

  4. How effective are condoms? https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/birth-control/condom/how-effective-are-condoms 

  5. Little, A. C., Burriss, R. P., Petrie, M., Jones, B. C., & Roberts, S. C. (2013). Oral contraceptive use in women changes preferences for male facial masculinity and is associated with partner facial masculinity. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 38(9), 1777–1785. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.02.014
  6. Hasson KA. (2020 Jul 25). Not a “Real” Period?: Social and Material Constructions of Menstruation. The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Menstruation Studies [Internet]. Singapore: Palgrave Macmillan; 2020. Chapter 56. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK565603/ doi: 10.1007/978-981-15-0614-7_56N

  7. Lin, Y. P., Chen, W. C., Cheng, C. M., & Shen, C. J. (2021). Vaginal pH Value for Clinical Diagnosis and Treatment of Common Vaginitis. Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland), 11(11), 1996. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics11111996

  8. Ernst, H., Nall, R. (2018, December, 13). Why are my breasts sore before a period?. Medical News Today. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323998

  9. Kay, C., Morales-Brown, L. (2020, November, 8). Does it hurt when the hymen breaks?. Medical News Today. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/does-it-hurt-when-the-hymen-breaks

  10. Odeblad, E. (2002). The discovery of different types of cervical mucus and the Billings Ovulation Method. Bulletin of the Natural Family Planning Council of Victoria 21, no. 3, 3-35
  11.  Steward K, Raja A. (2022). Physiology, Ovulation And Basal Body Temperature. StatPearls Publishing
  12. Sheehan, J., Marcellin L., (2010, February, 17). Ovulation Pain: When Cramps Come in the Middle of Your Cycle. Everyday Health. https://www.everydayhealth.com/pms/ovulation-pain.aspx 

  13. Upham B., Smythe, S. (2022, October, 4). Predicting How Long the Menopausal Transition Will Last and When You’ll Reach Menopause: Questions and Answers. Everyday Health. https://www.everydayhealth.com/menopause/at-what-age-will-you-enter-menopause.aspx
  14. Hunt, E. (2017, January 22). Clitbait: 10 things you didn't know about the clitoris. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/jan/23/clitbait-10-things-you-didnt-know-about-the-clitoris

  15. Debby Herbenick, Tsung-Chieh (Jane) Fu, Jennifer Arter, Stephanie A. Sanders & Brian Dodge (2018) Women's Experiences With Genital Touching, Sexual Pleasure, and Orgasm: Results From a U.S. Probability Sample of Women Ages 18 to 94, Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy, 44:2, 201-212, DOI: 10.1080/0092623X.2017.1346530