Talk Soon. Talk Often.
August 13th 2020
Hi There Caddyshackers
Big thanks to our girl Kaitlyn for guest blogging last month and getting us up to speed on all things contraception, protection and birth control.
What better way to follow up a month of how to prevent unplanned pregnancies, than with a blog on how to talk to your children or the young people in your life about sex and relationships!
One of the most common questions we get asked by parents and carers is “when should I start talking to my kids about puberty, relationships and sex”? The following is a bit of a breakdown on how we give the response:
Always refer to body parts by their correct anatomical names. It is a Penis or a Vagina, not a willy, fairy, hoohah, huhu, or foof. Referring to them correctly is particularly important in the event of having to report unwanted sexual touch or sexual assault.
Young people are never too young to learn about self-esteem and healthy relationships. From a very young age, it is important that children see role-modelling of good self-esteem and healthy relationships. This helps them to foster and nurture connections with others and helps them to learn social norms. Self-esteem and healthy relationships are fundamental building blocks to sexual relationships, so they are both really important concepts to grasp and have experience of.
Young people are going through puberty at a much younger age then previous generations. It is not uncommon for a young women around age 8-9 to get a menstrual period. You may need to be having conversations around puberty and development sooner than you thought and schools have introduced their discussions around this earlier.
If young people start asking questions, they are curious and it indicates a good time to have a chat. Ask them what they already know (you may be surprised!), ask what they think, or how they feel about the question and/or the answer. You do not have to be an expert and know all the answers. Honesty is important here. If you don’t know the answer, say so, and find out together using online resources, local services or telephone advice.
“The talk” isn’t a one off chat. Ideally it is lots of smaller chats at relevant times and life moments. You can use themes in songs, movies or TV shows to help generate a really meaningful conversation around these topics too.
If this has spiked your interest in learning to talk to young people about sexual health and relationships, why not register to attend our upcoming Talk Soon. Talk Often. Webinar on the 8th September for 90 minutes, starting at 11am?
In this training we give some practical examples of how you can talk to your young people, and look more deeply into self-esteem, healthy relationships, consent, sexting and current sexual health trends in young people.
To register go to Sticky Tickets. Once registered (it’s free) you will receive a hard copy of the book that Noami is holding in the video (right).
If you are unable to join us but would like to know more, you can check out the Talk Soon. Talk Often resource and follow along each chapter on Caddyshack Project YouTube channel.
What we are loving right now
Right now we are loving Sex Positive Families.
Sex Positive Families provides parents and caring adults with the education, resources, and support to raise sexually healthy children using a shame-free, comprehensive, and pleasure-positive approach.
Check out their blog, reading lists and instagram for some great tips and resources!
Until next time
Peace, Love & Protection
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