We know that teens and young adults who delay having their first sexual experiences often take less risks and have less regrets than those that start earlier. I discussed reasons why people in a healthy relationship might delay having sex and these are the answers the 14 year olds came up with:
❤️ Religious or cultural beliefs
🧡Waiting to have more of an emotional connection with the other person
💛Working on building trust first
💚 Just don’t want to
💙 Might be asexual
💜They don’t feel horny
🖤 Worried about STIs or pregnancy
🤍Too embarrassed to buy condoms
🤎Worried about having sex
❤️Don’t have a safe place to do it
🧡Feel that they are too young
💛 Too busy
💚On their period
💙Drunk / High
💜Parents don’t like your partner
🖤Medical reasons
🤍Want to make sure they’re not being used
I’d say that’s a fairly good list!
I believe that giving young people the chance to think about and discuss their opinions and listen to other people their age talk about these issues allows them to see that they are not alone; what other people are thinking and hopefully alleviates any pressure that they might be feeling to in any way rush into something physical. This is not about putting them off sex at all, it’s about allowing them to see that there can be many reasons why people wait and do not take the decision lightly to start sexual activity.