Face pubertal development shame: spiritual fetters and leaps on the way to growth

Adolescence, like a wonderful and slightly flustered transformation journey, brings growth surprises at the same time, the development of shame is often accompanied, plaguing many teenagers. ​

Physical changes are often the trigger for shame. Into adolescence, the boy’s voice becomes coarse, Adam’s apple is prominent, the girl’s breast development, menarche, these physiological characteristics of significant changes, often make teenagers into embarrassment and unease. There is a girl, in the class suddenly encountered their first period, unprepared for her, in the face of blood on the pants, full of panic and shame, want to find a seam into the ground. Since then, every time she had her period, she was nervous and always felt that others were pointing at her body changes. This excessive sensitivity and worry about physical changes make them either try to cover up in daily life, or produce inferiority due to physical changes.

​Psychological fluctuations also add to the shame. Adolescent children have curiosity and affection for the opposite sex, which is a normal emotion, but because of social concepts and their own cognitive limitations, it is regarded as “immoral” and “bad thoughts”. A boy accidentally found himself unconsciously concerned about beautiful girls, the heart is full of remorse, feel their thoughts dirty, in contact with the opposite sex, is nervous, behavior becomes abnormal, over time, into the mire of self-doubt, the social circle is increasingly narrow. ​

Pubertal shame can occur for a number of reasons. In the family, parents rarely talk about physical growth, thus their children lack of scientific knowledge so that they psychologically unprepared in the face of physical changes. In school education, the imperfection of sex education curriculum is mostly dragonfly water and concealment, unable to solve the confusion in the heart of children. In the social environment, the taboo on the topic of sex and some inappropriate public opinion guidance have “stigmatized” the normal development changes in adolescence, making teenagers bear a heavy psychological burden. ​

But the negative effects of such shame cannot be underestimated. It hinders the normal physical and mental development of teenagers, making them fall into the vortex of low self-esteem, anxiety, depression and other negative emotions at the age when they should be vigorous, seriously affecting mental health. At the social level, they shut themselves off because of shame, miss many opportunities to make friends and expand their horizons, and interpersonal development is hindered. ​

To resolve the shame of adolescent development, families, schools, and society need to work together. Parents should abandon traditional concepts, communicate with their children about adolescence in an open and peaceful manner, and give them understanding and support. Schools should improve the sex education system and help children correctly understand physical and emotional changes through scientific and systematic curriculum. Society should also create an inclusive and healthy public opinion environment to guide the public to face up to adolescent development. ​

Pubertal shame is not an insurmountable gap. As long as all parties work together to dispel the haze for young people, they will be able to bravely accept themselves, confidently march towards a new journey of life, and bloom their own glory on the road of growth. ​