Teenage Sexuality and How to Cope With It

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Jan_Gamm]Jan Gamm

Think back to the days when you were seventeen, or eighteen years old. Does it seem like a very long time between the age of seventeen and, say, twenty? No? I thought not.

Now, think of what you are doing when you deny your daughter the right to contraceptive protection NOW. If your daughter is only fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, whatever she might be, do you really think that when she is a grown up lady with children of her own, you are going to agonise as you lay awake in your bed, �Oh God, I wish I had not allowed Florence to use condoms when she was seventeen!!� I do not think so.

Sometimes, as parents, we love our children so deeply that when new evidence of maturity and independence appears, we struggle and fight against the tide of development. That is not to say it is right to do so. Some issues are so vitally important, you must let go of their hands, so they can make the right choices.

When it comes to sexual practicality, we as parents must always err on the side of safety. So what if your daughter is proposing to have a sexual relationship with a young man she is unlikely to spend the rest of her life with? Hello? Are you in the same century with the rest of us?

We all find it hard to discuss these things with our �children,� and I do not care what anyone says, my child will remain my child for the rest of my life, whatever her age. My advice to someone having to cope with this very grown up development in their daughter�s life is to make an appointment with the family doctor - for her, not you � and then graciously step aside, while she makes a sensible contraceptive plan with someone who can certainly advise her better than you.

Do not question her as to what took place in the doctor�s surgery, do not utter a word. Wait patiently and she will likely inform you of developments herself. If she does not � tough.

Sexual maturity is something which happens to everybody eventually whether their parents like it or not. Far better help your kid do something sensible, rather than join the long, long line of heartbroken parents whose teenagers fall pregnant, or ill with a sexually transmitted disease. These alternatives do not bear thinking about for parents who sincerely love their kids and want the best and safest possible transition into adulthood for them.

There is a side benefit to being supportive in these matters; your daughter will always remember how understanding you were at this time and be glad to have you as her friend. Be grateful.

Jan Gamm writes reflections on life with an emphasis on world travel. She has lived in many countries and traveled extensively in the Far East, the Middle East, America, South America and throughout the South Pacific. She writes for fun and for money whenever she can manage it.