Discussing sex with a child can be a frightening experience, for the parent. The following scenario might help:

Now that you are old enough to feel sexually attracted to another individual, you need to know that the emotions and physical changes you are experiencing are completely normal. So whether or not you think you should be having these kinds of thoughts or physical changes in your body, just know that they are involuntary and entirely normal for all of us.

Having sexual feelings is a bit like our appetite in the beginning; we start feeling hungry because we see or smell something yummy, and whether we know we should eat it or not, our tummies start rumbling and our mouths water. These responses are not something that any of us have control over, but learning how to react to those feelings or physical changes in an appropriate way is something you can do if you know how.

When you see someone who you feel attracted to, neurotransmitters in your brain send signals to parts of your body whose job it is to release hormones into your system. The hormones will cause a girl to feel wet, or make a young man’s penis become stiff. All of these things can happen in a few seconds without any effort from you whatsoever.

During your teenage years, you might find that some of these changes occur at inconvenient or inappropriate times. Looking back at how our appetite causes changes; imagine you are in church and you suddenly smell donuts from the shop next door; whether you like it or not, your mouth will begin to water and you’ll feel hungry, but you know it is not the time or place to be eating!

The changes we experience do not usually cause us too many problems, so long as you understand why they happen and react to them in a socially acceptable way. As you get older you will have more control over the physical responses, even if you see a beautiful girl/ handsome guy.

I remember I was walking around school with my friend and a guy she thought was really cute walked by. She always denied having a crush on him, but her nipples began to poke out and she got all embarrassed. Of course we all thought it was hilarious at the time, but she was not laughing. This is the same kind of physical change that a boy with an erection experiences.

Our bodies are quite fascinating, don’t you think? After all, before we are told about hormones and puberty our bodies already knew what to do, but we have to be told. So, if you have any questions just let me know. You don’t need to feel embarrassed, but if you want to ask me a question and you feel a bit weird talking to your Mum about it, shoot me a text message during recess.