puberty

Scarleteen Confidential: Ten Questions with Scott Todnem about Puberty, Masculinity, and Raising Boys

We encourage parents and guardians to have honest, supportive conversations with young people about sex and relationships. Because we know that can sometimes be intimidating, we're always on the lookout for resources to help with the trickier parts of those interactions, which is why we were excited to read the recently released Sex Education for Boys: A Parent's Guide: Practical Advice on Puberty, Sex, and Relationships by Scott Todnem. Scott chatted with us about how the book came to be, how to model positive masculinity, and the different challenges that come with raising boys.

Wait, What? It's Finally Here?!? (It is!)

From Heather Corinna, founder and director of Scarleteen.com, and Isabella Rotman, cartoonist, sex educator and Scarleteen artist-in-residence, comes a new graphic novel guide -- and activity book! -- that covers essential topics for preteens and young teens about their changing bodies and feelings. Find out all about it, and sneak preview one of our fave sections, here!

I feel uncomfortable in my body, but don't know how to express it to my parents: please help!

Anonymous asks:
I'm a 14 year old who was assigned female sex at birth, but recently I've started to feel insecure, angry and depressed about my body. Whenever I get my period I feel super grossed out and uncomfortable, as well as angry and frustrated. I've tried to talk to my mom but I just don't know how to express it to her, and I'm worried that my parents will have a bad reaction....

Baby Fat, Or Why the Ugly Duckling is a Rubbish Story.

Anonymous asks:
I've always been pudgy and although I've always struggled with it I've recently learned to acknowledge that hey! I can look average and I have fairly nice parts. But I have a really large stomach, I mean, I try to eat pretty healthily I don't exercise as much as I should but I know loads of people with the same lifestyle but small stomachs....

Connecting with WOC and Sexuality

Sexuality in ColorEver since puberty, I found my body to be a site of shame, something I desperately wanted to escape.

A transplant to predominantly white Catholic schools on Long Island, I was immediately deemed ugly. I had an older sister, but we were close enough in age that we were navigating puberty around the same time. As second-generation daughters of immigrant parents, we were on our own as far as navigating the personal and social meanings of our bodies.

I'm scared to touch my own vagina: why?

birthdaycake123
asks:
Hey. I'm 14 and I've never fingered myself. I've done other things, but the thought of fingering myself just seems gross. A couple times, I've tried to, but then I get to thinking about how gross vaginas are, and I chicken out. I know this is irrational, but do you have any advice on getting over this? Thanks....

Best of Both Worlds: Scarleteen Until You're Ready, This and and Other Expert Sites When You're Ready

This is a guest post from Figleaf at Real Adult Sex, and part of the month-long blogathon to support Scarleteen!

Ugh! I’ve got the worst cold today. And here I am writing an entry for the Scarleteen Sex-Ed Blog Carnival. Instead of feeling like an all-American male sexpert I feel roughly as sexy as room-temperature jello.

But that’s actually a perfect hook for this post! When you’re sick, a track coach or personal trainer might be able to give you some good advice, but really, the best person to talk to is a doctor. Similarly, when you’re trying to start a business it’s fascinating to talk to an accountant or patent lawyer. But you’ll get much better advice from your local Small Business Administration. Well, it’s the same thing with sexperts vs sex educators.