A Florida teen kills herself because of the shame and embarrassment over a sext (sexy txt message for those keeping score at home). Seems she sent over a nude photo of herself to a boy she liked. Not that sending one to a boyfriend is smart, but a self-nude to a dude you merely LIKE - not a good decision.
What does the behavior say about us as parents and adults, the ones charged with helping kids navigate through the awkwardness and confusion of childhood/puberty. Are we missing the connections? The connections between self-respect and our favorite singer's pole dancing performance. Between the racy covers of Cosmo and the casual, commonplace attitude many young adults have about sex and nudity. What about the cries of "slut" and "whore" she experienced before she made the choice to end her life? What is going on with those kids, to verbally abuse a classmate over a poor decision that so many have/are currently making in their own lives.
Way too many questions in this post, I know. I wish I had answers to even 1 of these difficult situations but I don't, not even close. I simply continue trying to get my head around the challenges kids/tweens/teens are dealing with these days as I make every effort to raise confident, independent-spirited young ladies. It's really all I can do - keep my head up and never give up engaging them in conversation, listening to them and showing them love every damn day. Then, just hope they have the opportunity to learn from the mistakes that are going to come while living a full, interesting life.
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