Teens and Birth Control

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OK, this is a really naive question but my kids are 9 and 10 so I haven't had to deal with this yet. And understand that I didn't have sex until college. But when do these younger teenagers get the opportunity to have sex? When are they in a situation where they are unsupervised enough that they could?

My first time happened when I was spending the night at my bf's house. Her parents were home but asleep and she was asleep. He brother and I were not.

If it was my DD I would put her on the patch or ring. Much less risk of her forgetting her bc. The pill is most effective taken every day at the same time. I was terrible at remembering to take it.

My mom was in the medical field and she used to have a book with graphic images of STDs that she would "accidentally" leave out when we were in our late teens. My brother and I both got the message.

My mom often used long car rides when we were a captive audience to talk about sex. I was terrified of getting pregnant or an STD because she took so much time to educate me. That said, I was sexually active at 16, so I wasn't scared into abstinence.

Also, a friend of mine has a sister in high school locally. She is very bright and an athlete. She and her friends believe in staying virgins, so they have anal sex instead, which is much scarier to me. This is why abstinence only education isn't enough. Kids can get the message about remaining a virgin but still do oral and anal, both of which can put them at risk for STDs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Once kids are 12 or 13 they are legally old enough to come home from school and hang out by themselves untill their parents come home.

Certainly by the time they are 14 or 15, kids will no longer want to be in afterschool supervised care. They may stay after school for clubs and athletics, or they may not.

Even if a parent is home at your house, they may go to a friend's house (with no adult present) and they can hook up with a member of the opposite sex there.

And people question the value of sahms once kids are in school?? This is one of the main reasons I don't work even tho my kids are teens. And what parent is dumb enough not to make sure a parent is home at the other kid's house? You don't have to be breathing down their necks, but an adult presence is an easy deterrent to all sorts of irresponsible behavior.

[Anonymous]

I kind of agree -- I wish someone had told me when my kids were little that I would want to be home MORE once they hit middle school. At least when kids are really young, it's possible to find high quality care for them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OK, this is a really naive question but my kids are 9 and 10 so I haven't had to deal with this yet. And understand that I didn't have sex until college. But when do these younger teenagers get the opportunity to have sex? When are they in a situation where they are unsupervised enough that they could?

Also, a friend of mine has a sister in high school locally. She is very bright and an athlete. She and her friends believe in staying virgins, so they have anal sex instead, which is much scarier to me. This is why abstinence only education isn't enough. Kids can get the message about remaining a virgin but still do oral and anal, both of which can put them at risk for STDs.

You would not BELIEVE the amount of girls I knew at UMD who subscribed to this philosophy....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I kind of agree -- I wish someone had told me when my kids were little that I would want to be home MORE once they hit middle school. At least when kids are really young, it's possible to find high quality care for them.

DH and I try to telecommute in the afternoons or have "grandparent presence" in the house.

There was a magic few months when she was 12 that staying home alone briefly seemed like it was going to be a great new possibility....we don't feel that way anymore! More to get into the older they get.