Is there a "magic age" when I should talk to my kids about sex, bullying and other serious topics?
Because of social media, our kids are really bombarded with information regarding sex and drugs. So it is important for parents to arm kids with information. It since it makes more sense to have that information and that education coming from parents versus other sources, it is important early on to have conversations with kids about those more difficult conversations like sex and drugs and bullying.
Usually we see an increase in some of that about age eight or nine. That is when kids become a little more socially engaged and where friends start to matter a little bit more. It makes a lot of sense that that it would be a natural time in a kid’s life to start having some of those conversations. Initially, I would make them very, very basic. As they develop and age or grow older, I would expand that conversation to what you expect of them in terms of dating and substance use.
Bullying is more and more available to kids because of social media and so it is important for parents to talk about how to manage that with kids. What do they do when they feel like they're being bullied? How do they manage that with peers? Having those conversations early on really arms kids in terms of how to deal with it but first and foremost it is important for parents to be aware of how pervasive it can be.
