Parenting Kids And The Difficulties Of Chatting About Teen Sexuality

When it comes to talking about teen sexuality a lot of parents find it hard to talk to their teenagers and attempt to steer clear of the subject. Sex however is a natural and important part of all our lives and as teens mature they will become increasingly curious about the subject of sex and their own sexuality.

This can however also be a dangerous area these days and one which can easily lead to both health and emotional problems for our kids and the majority of parents are obviously concerned about such things as teenage pregnancy and the risk of contracting a range of sexually transmitted diseases including aids.

Most parents attempt to ignore the subject of sex and contend that this is something which should be handled under the heading of sex or health education in school and, despite the fact that schools do indeed have a central role to play, this does not release you as a parent from your own overall responsibility for advising your teens about sex.

The topic of sex is exciting to kids and they are going to be only too eager to explore it, but it is vital that they get information, advice and guidance on the subject from someone they can trust and there should not be anyone they trust more than their parents. Further, sex has traditionally been something of a taboo subject and still carries with it many of the Victorian attitudes of being something that is wicked and dirty. So, if you fail to talk about sex openly within the family and set in into its proper framework for your children then you are merely supporting the view that sex is something bad.

Puberty is a time when kids are naturally going to investigate their own bodies and will be curious about other people's bodies, but it is also a time when they frequently feel that they are doing somehow wrong or something that they should be ashamed of.

It is very important therefore that when parenting teens you step in at this point with the answers for the host of questions that are popping into your child's head. Now is the time when you have to talk freely about sex and the role of sex in the framework of a relationship.

There are of course many different issues associated with the subject of teen sexuality which is about a great deal more than just sex itself. This is a time therefore when teenagers need to learn about not merely the dangers of engaging in unprotected sex but the far wider subject of teen relationship advice and the emotional ups and downs that can accompany relationships. Critically, it is also a time when they have to see their sexuality as a normal part of growing up and something which is both understood and accepted within the family.