Chapter 1: Seeking The Right FIT: From Training Bras to Self-Identity as Adolescents Search for Self

The years between 11 and 21 represent a dramatic developmental decade. The pivotal years from early adolescence to young adulthood are exemplified by a range of physiological, sexual, cognitive, and psychological changes. It is common to describe this adolescent period as one of identity crisis, rebellion, self-consciousness, sexual exploration, peer engagement, promise and hope, anxiety, searching, and experimentation. In whatever terms adolescence is identified, it is a time in life that is marked by a quest for individual identity. The prevailing questions—Who am I? Who will I become?—permeate the mind and soul of adolescents, and whether or not these questions are answered with ease or with a battle remains each individual’s “coming of age.”