By Ogova Ondego
Published April 9, 2024
In this era of sexual pressure in which sex is used to sell commodities, no parent can insulate one’s child against other influences that push them towards sex.
Sexual imagery and influence are everywhere – music, videos, social media, television and cinema, newspapers, magazines and books, peers – bombarding your child’s eyes and ears.
So whether you talk to the children about sex or not, they are already being influenced one way or the other. Your input, however, helps them to make sense of all the sexual messages they encounter.
If you decide not to talk to your children about sex either through embarrassment or fear of pushing them into early sex, writer Steve Chalke contends in The Parent Talk Guide To Your Child And Sex that you you are putting your children at the mercy of other influencers.
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Parents cannot protect children from life but can prepare them for it. They can arm them with information upon which to base decisions.
Chalke argues that research shows that most children want to know about sexuality from their own parents before hearing it from others. He also says that parents, because they care, teach children things schools may not.
He urges parents to start talking to their children about sex early. This, however, should be done bit by bit and often, making the information appropriate to the child’s age and understanding.
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“If possible, talk about sex when it naturally arises in a conversation you’re having with your child, or in a question they’ve asked. As well as saving you from the need to raise the subject out of the blue, it will help them to see sex as a natural part of life,” writes Chalke, who has also written The Parenttalk Guide to the Toddler years, The Parenttalk Guide to the Childhood years, The Parenttalk Guide to the Teenage Years and Sex Matters.
The Parent Talk Guide To Your Child And Sex, which goes for 2.64 UK Pounds online, gives parents tips on how to talk to their children about sexual abuse and what they can do to protect themselves, how to talk about masturbation and menstruation, and how to help children who feel they do not have friends of the opposite sex even though they would like to.
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The book pinpoints 12 common questions and shows parents how to talk about sex when it naturally arises in am conversation you’re having with your child or in a question they’ve asked:
- Where do babies come from?
- Do you really have sex, and must I have to do it when I am older?
- When are you too young to have sex?
- Does sex hurt?
- How do I say No to sex?
- How far should I go?
- Can you get pregnant the first time?
- What if I don’t find a boyfriend or girlfriend?
- What can I do in case I’ve made a mistake?
The Parent Talk Guide To Your Child And Sex is an easy read and
is well illustrated with communicating’ cartoons.
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