Guest columnist Amy Florian: Let's broaden our vision for a realistic view of needs of women, families and communities

During Women's History Month, we rightly recognize and celebrate women's achievements and influence in society.

However, we need to avoid the temptation to idealize women too much, placing them on a lofty pedestal for all their sacrifices and life-giving qualities or creating an image of perfection that seems impossible for most women to achieve. We also risk ending the month feeling satisfied that, having honored women properly, we can now return to life as usual.

What Women's History Month needs to do instead is engender real change. Do recognize and celebrate courageous women who publicly accomplished great things in the face of odds. We desperately need such role models. But don't lose sight of the vast numbers of unsung women struggling to survive who need to be heard, taken seriously, honored and upheld.

These are the women in Ukraine who either join the fight for freedom or flee with the young and vulnerable in hopes of returning to rebuild, the single mothers going hungry themselves and stretching a too-thin budget to raise their kids (often alone), the women working in menial jobs that the more privileged take for granted or even abuse, the women passed over yet again for the promotion or job opportunity, the teen women pushed to the brink of suicide by the behavior of others, the diverse women cast aside for being "different," the aging women relentlessly pressured to undergo surgeries, injections and procedures to generate appearance and acceptability and on it goes.

Let's broaden our vision to see more clearly how the needs of women reflect the deepest needs of families, communities and countries and then address those needs more effectively.

Let's change "life as usual." After all, if we authentically celebrate, uphold and improve life for ALL women, then history and research show that in the process we will improve life for everyone.

• Amy Florian, of Hoffman Estates, is CEO of Corgenius and an author and expert in the study of grief.