The Birds and Bees Talk Gets A Remodel For The 21st Century

A new study just released by Harvard that looks at data about what teens need and want from their parents to help them with the sexual life of a 21st teen and young adult, is an eye opener. I give some tips for parents in this article in USA Today that discusses this recent study. Link to article is below.
Here are a few more tips.

If you're concerned about your teen's emotional or sexual inexperience, direct questions toward those issues: "What do you want your first sexual experience to be like?" "Access to alcohol is going to be freer, so how do you feel you'll handle that?" "Do you have a strategy for ending an intimate encounter that's gone as far as you want it to go, or are getting mixed messages about how far to go?"

These conversations may make you uncomfortable, but they're important because your teen probably can't talk to his/her friends about setting boundaries, and they are going to need some new strategies, even if they're as simple as just saying "Not tonight!" or "I've got to go now."

"I think the biggest gift a parent can give a teen who's about  to dip their toes in experiencing sex is to say ,'I know you're going to be in these situations. I'm not judging you. I just want to give you opportunities to be the safest you can be, so let's talk about it."

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2017/05/25/consent-hook-ups-harassment-why-you-
must-talk-your-teen-all-before-college/102137806/

Why not share this post with your friends, everybody could use a little help with the sex thing!!

For parent coaching by phone, Skype or in-person contact me at 781-910-1770 or joani@joanigeltman.com. Sometimes you just need to bounce off an issue for an hour and walk away with a strategy!