Let’s talk about…

Sex, and puberty…

Before you go any further, don’t panic, this is a family blog. This is an honest, but clean post, I promise. 

We have a tweenager, in the house, and she is rapidly growing up, both emotionally and physically. The two tie together, and we have HORMONES aplenty because she is hitting puberty. 

As much as this mum would like to live in utter denial that her baby is growing up, she can’t, so we are facing puberty and all it entails with honesty, and trying to keep it simple, but also maintain our sense of humour. (that can be tricky with tweenage meltdowns aplenty going on!)

My mum was not a person who, I think felt that comfortable talking about puberty and sex, and body changes. She did talk to me about things, but it was in a very reserved way and because I was away at boarding school through most of my adolescence and teenage years, puberty kind of happened and I dealt with it mostly myself, with some support from peers and staff at school. I did write to my mum, and we were better with written communication on matters of what was going on with my body. We also grew up Catholic, which put a certain slant on things, in terms of what was acceptable to talk about or how things were viewed. 

 My mum handed me this book when I was 11, and I read it, and some of it horrified me, and I mostly decided that I was having NONE of it. Of course, I couldn’t avoid it.

Anyone else have this book as a tween/teenager? Yes, I am THAT old! 

So, with my own daughter, (and eventually my son, although the husband will also be involved) I am working on doing things a little differently. 

We are pretty open and honest about bodily functions and what our bodies do, and also using proper terms for body parts, and we have of course taught the children about what personal body space and autonomy is and about being safe in terms of what other people can and cannot do/touch etc but now we are facing a whole new stage, with bodies changing, hormones, and what happens next. 

I don’t hide or sugar coat stuff and we don’t have silly expressions or cutesy phrases. We have been open with her about sex and what it is, and why. She knows about menstruation, and why it happens and what to expect, and I am prepared for that to happen, and we have talked about it. We have always answered questions about how babies are made, born, why males are different from females and how our bodies work, which I think has helped to make the slide into talking about puberty easier. I also want to teach my children about sex, puberty and body changes myself and not just rely on the school or their peers to educate them. I feel strongly about this. 

I have an open door policy. She can come and ask me anything she wants, or if she has any worries or concerns about what is happening to her body, and her emotions. We try to find time to talk about things in a way she feels comfortable (kids can be curious but it’s also helpful to not overload them with information, and to try and gauge how they react when you are talking to them) and she knows that even if it seems silly to her, that she can come and ask me. If for some reason I don’t have an answer, we try and look up answers together to find the information she needs.  She is less keen to talk to her Dad about stuff (which is understandable) but I have prepped him to be open and honest with her and also gentle and not make her feel silly,  or embarrassed. Although I am not planning on going anywhere, I want her to be able to at least be able to ask her dad if she needs for help, or advice, if for some reason I wasn’t around to be there for her (my own mum dying as I hit adulthood makes me aware that sometimes this happens) 

We have bought some good books, that she and I can read, and if I think we need to talk about something I try to broach it gently and in a way that navigates that she isn’t quite eleven yet, but is growing up and needs that input. 

So far, so good, and whilst I would cheerfully like to be in denial that my girl is growing up, I think I am coping, and she seems to be too. Of course this stage is not without it’s bumps and I am sure there will be things that we will struggle with, but I think I am ready, and I hope, I am doing my best to get her ready for it too. It’s a whole new world of parenting, and like most of it, so far, it seems to be a figure it out as you go thing. Anyone else find that?

If you have a child facing puberty, how are you as a parent handling it? How are they coping? How do you approach talking to them and helping them face the changes coming?

After the Playground
Posted in Family Life and Parenting and tagged body changes, hormones, parenting a teenager, puberty, sex, talking to your kids about sex, tweenagers.

6 Comments

  1. My 10 year started puberty a year ago. She was at school yesterday when her period started … luckily she had a pad with her (just in case), but she was in agony all day and scared to talk to the teacher as it was a stand-in teacher and she was really strict πŸ™ It seems so unfair for someone so young to have to cope with everything that’s happening to her. Noone else in her class is at that stage. Because she’s growing and developing so quickly, she looks 5 years older than her classmates and that makes her feel a bit exposed when standing in a line etc. I wish the other girls would hurry up and catch up!

    • E is the same, at 10.5 she is a head taller than her peers, and has started some puberty signs that they haven’t. It’s hard for her, they will catch up. I was the opposite and was much older so I’m learning how to help her cope! Thanks for commenting! Good luck to you as well!

  2. I suspect I’m not doing it very well this time around. I was on message with my two eldest daughters and I think covered everything but with my youngest I have kind of forgotten about it. This is something I need to sort out! Thanks for sharing this great post at #TweensTeensBeyond.

  3. My daughter was young when she went through puberty and felt very isolated as she was the only one among her friends in that situation. Like you we always discuss things very openly and both my teens have not been shy to ask questions or advice over the years – even now. If you have a close relationship and open conversations I think it makes a big difference. Good luck. Thanks for joining us again. #TweensTeensBeyond

  4. I cheat, my sister has two girls one who is two years older than and one a year younger than my daughter. She tends to find everything out from them and is really comfortable talking to auntie. She does talk to me though when she has questions which is good ?

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