NEW YORK — Parenting can be a challenging job on the best days, but it’s especially rough when it comes to discussing difficult subjects with your kids. It turns out most adults today are taking a different approach than their parents did years ago. A new study finds 83 percent of parents are consciously making sure they prepare their kids for life differently than their parents prepared them.
A poll of 2,000 parents of school-age children (5-18 years-old) finds 71 percent approach “the period talk” differently with their kids in comparison to how their parents handled it with them.
How are parents preparing their children for puberty?
Three in four are talking with their children more frequently about this topic in comparison to when they were kids. Nearly four in five are tackling puberty with their children more thoroughly than they say their parents did as well. Over half the poll (51%) are even celebrating these milestones (however small) — something they never experienced growing up.
The study, conducted by OnePoll in conjunction with DivaCup, also reveals how parents are preparing youngsters for adulthood differently than their moms and dads did. Researchers discovered 74 percent want their daughters to have more preparation for their first period than they had growing up.
Some of the key differences between how parents learned about their period and how they plan on tackling this tough topic with their kids include both educating them on how to use various period products (66%) and providing them with a variety of period products to choose from (58%). Seventy-eight percent of respondents simply want their kids to have more and better options when it comes to menstrual care than they had at their age.
Getting ready for body changes
“Menstruation is an important topic that needs to be discussed between parents and kids. These days, parents are eager to make life better and less stressful for their kids as their bodies change and develop. As a mother myself, I don’t want my kids to endure what I went through at that same age” says Carinne Chambers-Saini, CEO and Founder of Diva International, makers of the DivaCup, in a statement.For those parents who’ve already had “the menstruation talk” with their child, 85 percent provided them with a lot more menstruation options than they received at that age. Seven in 10 parents went out of their way to teach their child how to use all the different menstruation products to ensure they were adequately prepared.
“This means that people coming into the menstruating age are empowered with knowledge, education, and full-body awareness,” Chambers-Saini says.
“Preparing kids for their changing bodies and menstruation starts with how parents approach the subject. By equipping your kids with options and helpful information, they can feel better prepared for when the time comes — and you can rest assured that they’ll be better equipped than you ever were at their age,” adds a spokesperson for DivaCup.