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Parents are the primary sexuality educators for their children. The following tips can help increase our effectiveness.<\/p>\n
Be an \u201caskable parent.\u201d Reward questions. Don\u2019t worry about knowing all the answers to your children\u2019s questions; what you know is a lot less important than how you respond. If you can convey the message that no subject, including sex, is forbidden in your home, you\u2019ll be doing just fine.<\/p>\n
Find \u201cteachable moments.\u201d If your child hasn\u2019t started asking questions about sex, look for a good opportunity to bring it up. Say for instance, the mother of a 10-year-old\u2019s best friend is pregnant. You can say, \u201cDid you notice that David\u2019s mom\u2019s tummy is getting bigger? That\u2019s because she\u2019s going to have a baby and she\u2019s carrying it inside her. Do you know how the baby got inside her?\u201d then let the conversation move from there.<\/p>\n
You don\u2019t need to wait until they ask a question.
It is okay to feel uncomfortable. Relax. Even if you can\u2019t quite overcome your discomfort, don\u2019t worry about admitting it to your kids. It\u2019s okay to say something like, \u201cYou know, I\u2019m uncomfortable talking about sex because my parents never talked with me about it. But I want us to be able to talk about anything\u2014including sex\u2014so please come to me if you have any questions. And if I don\u2019t know the answer, I\u2019ll find out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Be sure to talk about the joys of sexuality. Being honest about the positive aspects of healthy sexual relationships will build trust between you and your children. They know that sex has risks and benefits and need to learn that from you.<\/p>\n
Listen, listen, and listen. Practice \u201cactive listening.\u201d Encourage your child to open up to you, find out information from him\/her by asking questions, make sure you understand what your child is saying (you may want to repeat what you think he\/she is saying back to them for confirmation), and talk about your feeling and his\/her feelings about the situation. Always encourage further communication.<\/p>\n
Facts are not enough. It\u2019s our responsibility to let our children know our values about sex. Although they may not adopt these values as they mature, at least they\u2019ll be aware of them as they struggle to figure out how they feel and want to behave. Think about the values you want your child to hear from you about many different aspects of sexuality and work them into teachable moments when you can. Know what is being taught about sexuality in your schools, churches and youth groups.<\/p>\n
When you talk to your children about sexuality, you are telling them that you care about their happiness and well-being. Be aware of the \u201cquestion behind the question.\u201d Look at body language and think about events going on in the current moment or in the child\u2019s life that might be prompting the question(s). Ask questions to find out what your child really want to know. It may be that your child wants to know something else but isn\u2019t sure how to ask.<\/p>\n
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Talking to Your Kids About Sexuality:10 Communication TipsParents are the primary sexuality educators for their children. The following tips can help increase our effectiveness. Be an \u201caskable parent.\u201d Reward questions. Don\u2019t worry about knowing all the answers to your children\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":243171,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-243192","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n