Melissa Petro

Melissa Petro

Bio

Melissa Petro is a former sex worker and "hooker teacher" who has written about the industry for HuffingtonPost, Salon, and others. She is also the founder of Becoming Writers, which provides free and low cost memoir-writing workshops and mentoring to writers of all backgrounds and experiences. More info at http://becomingwriters.wordpress.com. 

Melissa Petro Articles

Your friends might know more about style than you do. So learn from them already.

Copycat - Don't Be Ashamed To 'Steal' Your Friends' Styles

The biggest fashion mistake of my lifetime may not be what I wore, but what I didn’t.

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Since when has "just don't get pregnant" been an effective promotion of reproductive health?

The Zika Virus: Why Now Is The Time For Reproductive Justice In Latin America

Use insect repellent, sleep under a mosquito net, and just don’t get pregnant — is this the best we can do for Latin American women?

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"My family is who they are, and for the most part, I’ve learned to live with that. But being engaged and planning a wedding has definitely challenged my ability to accept."

Becoming Bride: My Brother Won't Be Coming To My Wedding

So, I got an email from my brother yesterday telling me that he’s not coming to the wedding. “I want to be there,” he writes, “I really do, but the idea of being consigned to [our mother and her boyfriend’s] care for the duration of the trip is driving me mad. You know, the whole lack of autonomy and being on someone else's time and all that.”

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Often, when the story is spoken out loud, it loses at least some — if not all — of its power.

Your Embarrassing Story Is No Big Deal 

We’ve all been in a situation where we've thought NO ONE CAN EVER KNOW THAT THIS HAPPENED TO ME.

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“It’s your day!” —  Britni De La Cretaz, on her day. Image: Justine Johnson Photography

Becoming Bride: The Best Advice From Real-Life Brides

Everyone I talk to agrees: Apparently, wedding planning is the most awful thing ever! Seriously, I did not know that when I first got engaged. This got me thinking... What else don’t I know?

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Sex Work Isn't Consensual Or Exploitative—It Can Be Both

It's time to talk substantively and honestly about how sex work isn't any one thing.

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Credit: ThinkStock

The Truth About "Horny Moms" And Sex Addiction

It's pretty well understood in 12 step programs that "who you see here and what you say here, stays here."

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Boys Do Cry (Even At Work)

“If someone’s crying at work, it’s because it’s their only outlet to release tension,” says Greg, age 30, a public school teacher. When people cry at work, Greg says, it’s because they’ve became “overwhelmed” or perhaps feel as if “they’re not meeting their goals.”

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If you have your wedding at a restaurant, the food is the star. Image: Thinkstock.

Becoming Bride: 5 Ways To Simplify The Wedding Planning Process

Engagements being the universally stressful occasions that they are, what this has meant is that I’m constantly pushing my fiancé to make wedding-related decisions, and he is constantly having to ask me (nicely and less-nicely) to give it a rest. It all came to a head this past weekend.

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Designated areas? Check. Remembering to get outside? Check. Compromises galore for anyone moving in together? Most definitely.

Dos And Don'ts Of Moving In With Your Significant Other

For any couples thinking about moving in together, I thought I’d share my Dos and Don’ts, and how my husband and I are making my small and unattractive (but inexpensive!) apartment work for our family.

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