About Nobody Told Me This
I’m Dana.
Nobody Told Me This is a biweekly newsletter I’m writing for Black women navigating 40 and beyond — and everything nobody warned us about. I started it because I was tired of looking for content that felt more attuned to where I'm at in life right now. I found everything too clinical, too generic, or too disconnected from how Black women move through this stage of life. The body changes. The relationships. The work of becoming the women we have looked up to. The questions our doctors don’t always answer. The cultural specificity mainstream women’s content leaves out. So I’m writing the thing I wanted to read. Honest. Useful. Culturally specific. Sometimes funny. Sometimes hard. Always written like a sister at the kitchen table, not a lecture from a podium.
This newsletter is really a love letter to all Black women of any age. Whether you’re a twentysomething (who will, hopefully, be 40 one day) or you’re in your 30s rapidly approaching 40, this is still for you. And guys, you’re welcome to pull up to our kitchen table. Learn how you can support your mama, your sisters, your aunties and any other special women in your life.
Every other Sunday, a new issue lands in your inbox. Each one has a personal note from me, then a main piece on something specific. So far, that’s meant menopause birthdays, the Superwoman cape we’re expected to never take off, loving my husband while protecting my Blackness, and finding your people in a “let’s do lunch” city. There’s always a section of useful things I’ve used or personally trust: books, resources, products, doctors, routines. And sometimes, conversations with experts, friends, and other Black women navigating the same things. I’m writing it as someone in the middle of it, talking honestly with the people I trust, and bringing what’s useful back to you.
I’m the founder of AfroLA, a nonprofit newsroom based in Los Angeles. We produce independent journalism that centers the lives of Black Angelenos and Black communities more broadly, with a focus on solutions, accessibility, and stories that mainstream media tends to miss. Nobody Told Me This is the most personal publication in AfroLA’s portfolio.
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Now about this photo. It me! I’m so excited because this was the opening night of Next Door: Environmental Injustice in Our Neighborhoods at the Los Angeles Center of Photography. We paired local high school students with pros from Black Women Photographers to document the everyday lives of L.A.-area residents impacted by poor air quality, contaminants in their water, oil infrastructure, and dust and pollution resulting from commercial trucking and warehousing in their neighborhoods.
