What Should I Teach My Adolescent About Sex?
It’s typical for teenagers to have a lot of questions, as well as a lot of ideas and feelings regarding sex and sexuality, and parents can help. Here are some suggestions for talking about sex with your adolescent.
What should I note?
Parents make a significant effect. Teens who have frequent conversations with their parents about a wide range of sex-related subjects are more likely to postpone sex until they are older and to use condoms and other kinds of birth control when they do become sexually active. Most teenagers say their parents have the most influence on their sexual decisions.
Many schools provide sex education, which includes information about abstinence, safer sex, birth control, and relationships, which is fantastic. Nothing, however, compares to the influence you have as a parent on a daily basis. That’s why, even if your teen is getting the correct information at school, talking about sex and sexuality at home is essential.
It is critical that you discuss your personal sex values and ideas. When you talk about sex with your teen, it will be simpler to give a clear message if you spend some time thinking about your personal beliefs and what you would like for your kid. Consider
When do you believe it would be appropriate for them to have sex?
Do you prefer that they be in a committed relationship or married first?
Do you want them to finish high school?
If you are explicit about your hopes and sentiments for your teen, they are more likely to embrace those same hopes and feelings. Whatever your expectations are, it’s also crucial to discuss how people can protect themselves during sex by using birth control and condoms. This will provide your teen with crucial information and let them know that they can discuss it with you.
It is not only about talking. Setting boundaries and having a healthy relationship with your teen are also vital. It is critical to discuss your ideals, expectations, birth control, and condoms. But so is having a close relationship with your teen that is founded on mutual respect.
Setting limits for your teen can also help them avoid potentially dangerous situations. Here are some actions you can take:
LimIt the amount of time your teen is permitted to spend with other teens who are not accompanied by an adult.
Encourage your teen not to hang out with people who are considerably older than them.
Get to know your teen’s friends, as well as their parents (if possible).
Inquire with your adolescent about where they’re going and where they’ve been.
Set a curfew for your teen.
How can I approach my adolescent about masturbation?
Masturbation is completely typical for teenagers. Masturbation is a fun and harmless way to relieve stress or period cramps, and it has no negative side effects. It’s also the most secure kind of intercourse. There’s no need to be concerned if you discover your adolescent is masturbating. Masturbation can satisfy sexual desires and assist teenagers in becoming acquainted with their own bodies.
Teens are bombarded with myths about masturbation, such as the belief that only men do it, or that everyone does it, and that if they don’t, they’re “strange.” Masturbation is practiced by people of all genders, although not by everyone. If you do it, it’s normal; if you don’t, it’s also normal and OK. Allowing your adolescent to know these truths might help them deal with myths they may encounter.
Teens in adolescence have a greater demand for seclusion and are more self-conscious about their bodies. Whether they masturbate or not, your adolescent will likely desire more privacy than they did when they were younger. Allow them to keep their bedroom door closed if they like, and knock before entering their room.
But what if you don’t knock and accidentally walk in on your youngster masturbating? Find a quiet moment afterwards to inform them that what they were doing was normal. Also, assure them that you will do your best to preserve their privacy. You’ll both be humiliated about it, but that’s fine.
How should I approach my adolescent about pornography?
Pornography and sexually graphic images and movies are widely available. In fact, many toddlers and teenagers first come across porn while searching for something else on the internet. Your teen has most definitely seen some porn on the internet, and some teens watch it on a daily basis.
The majority of young individuals who look at pornography do so because they are curious about other people’s bodies and about sex. However, pornography might create unreasonable expectations. So make it clear to your kid that porn sex is not the same as real sex.
Models’ and performers’ bodies, for example, are not typical of the average person’s body. Their bodies are cosmetically modified, and often surgically or hormonally. The types of sex that people have in pornography do not normally mirror what people do and prefer to do when they have sex in real life, and the amount of time it takes for individuals to get excited and stay excited in pornography is usually entirely unrealistic.
Another example of a negative message in pornography is the lack of communication — verbal or nonverbal — between performers prior to, during, and after sex. They rarely seek for consent, which is always required in real-life intercourse. And the actors in pornography rarely appear to be using birth control or condoms.
