like: sex (not the birds and the bees – stuff like “how do you know when you’re ready”, etc.), alcohol, drugs, date rape, cheating, bullying, teen suicide, violence and other subjects. How are they doing about helping you understand those issues? Do they initiate the conversations, wait for you to ask questions – or assume you’ve got it covered.
What would you like to be able to talk to them about but can’t? Why?
I’m 23 now, but when I was a teen, my parents simply told me the definition of something, then told me not to do it. Their biggest mistake was not letting me make any decisions over my life. Finally, when I would get into situations, I often made the wrong decisions because I finally got to make a decision. (Nothing life-threatening, I’m fine now). I would have liked for my parents to listen more and not have talked so much! But really, I wish they would have talked to me about sex and when your ready and how to protect oneself. I wish they didn’t judge me for the decisions I made, but rather, I wish they would have given me the tools to make the right decisions. I think that even if a child does something a parent doesn’t like, they need to accept that and help their child cope with the aftermath (teen pregnancy, drug addiction) and help them to make better decisions in the future. Hope this helps, I know I’m a little older.
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no they havent even talk about puberty
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yep! and no matter how much i dreaded these serious tals, it actually helps.
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my mom and i have talked about almost everything you’ve mentioned. every night before i go to bed, my mom comes in and sits on the floor next to my bed and talks to me about anything i want to talk about and tries to answer any questions i have. this system really works, because i feel open to her and want to talk to her without anyone else butting in. she lets me talk as long as i need to, and she’ll also tell me some things she wondered about at my age. we also talk when we’re watching tv and they bring up one of those things. i love my mom very much for this.
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All the time. Best way to keep your child safe from these things are to talk about them. My mom and I talk about this stuff almost every day and it really helps having somebody I can tell my secrets too. Not only do you know what’s going on in your child’s life, but you’re bonding. I can’t even begin to explain how much it can help your relationship. Go out to dinner together, see a movie, or just sit down during dinner and ask about these things. I’m sure they’ll play along or maybe even enjoy the fact that your willing to get involved with their “social teen problems.”
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I’m not a teen anymore, but my parents did talk with me back then. Quite often, my mom brought it up. Usually very casually, like by asking what I thought of this, or how I felt about that. We were very open and honest with each other, and she tried to never raise her vioce no matter what I said.Worked very well for us.
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yea, surely do all the time and i do listen to it and take it every seriously and people should take them more seriouly exceprtly about at a difficult time in people’s life.
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no… my mom just tells me not tod do ‘it’… she doesnt actually get into the conversation
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i wish!! my prents dont have the time, they are always working, or doing this or that, i cant talk to them about any thing. if i try most of the time they tell me they dont have time right now and never get back to me, or they yell at me for aking a ?.
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My mother never really talked to me about sex, drugs, date rape and the like. Sure she told me about them in passing, but she never actually explored the topics with me. Anything that I know now, was either learned from one of the many books I read, health class, people’s experiences or from my older brother.
Out of all the people in my family, he’s the one I’m most closest too. He usually made it a daily occurrence to sit me down and talk with me about drugs, alcohol, boys, sex and all the other topics, a teen should know about while growing up. And even though, I’m now 17 and he’s 26, we still have these conversations.
Sometimes, he initiated the conversations and sometimes I did. He’d ask me what I thought about sex and our conversation would just take off from there.
Though, I’m grateful for my brother and his little talks, I still wish my mother had of sat me down sometimes too and talked with me about these things. There’s just some things you can’t discuss with your older brother, like feminine things for instance.
I hoped I helped you in some way.
My experience from ages 11 to present.
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