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How To Keep Your Teen From Becoming an Online Porn Star

From Denise Witmer,
Your Guide to Parenting of Adolescents.
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While your teen may not set out to become famous on the web for naked pictures, it is happening to teens who aren’t prudent enough not to pose nude or in suggestive positions in front of friends with camera ready cell phones. Even boyfriends/girlfriends who are involved with heavy petting and/or sex, talk their partners into taking pictures which are then shared with friends. It doesn’t take long for these pictures to then be distributed throughout the Net. You can protect your teen from this kind of exposure, which can do irreparable harm to his/her self-esteem and body image, by following these tips.
Difficulty: Average
Time Required: n/a

Here's How:

  1. Talk to your teen about these issues. Use news articles to break the ice and have a discussion, not a debate. Talk about how you would get out of a situation that could lead to this problem and role-play.

  2. Set your expectations for digital camera and cell phone camera use. Basically you need to send a clear message that nude pictures in any way, shape or form are wrong and you expect your teen not to participate in them – whether it’s in the taking or the posing of them.

  3. Oversee your teen’s blog and social networking sites. Today’s parents needs to get Net savvy because their teens are. Whether you have a computer that is hooked up on the Net or not, your teen is there in school and at his/her friend’s homes. To learn more about the internet take a look at About.com’s Internet for Beginners.

  4. Help your teen handle peer pressure. Find ways to encourage positive teen friendships. Get to know your teen’s friends and their families enough to be able to talk with them.

  5. Strive to give your teen a positive body image. Be diligent in keeping the media and peers from effecting your teen’s point of view about him/her self.

  6. Build your teen’s self-esteem. While being a teen often means that he/she will question their identity and do crazy things because of it, teens with strong self-esteem are less likely to engage in behavior that is harmful to them.

  7. Raise a drug free teen. Often teens who have had this problem cite that they were caught unaware because of drug and alcohol influence. The benefits of keeping your teen drug free are multiplying, aren't they?

  8. Teach your teen good decision making skills. We can’t always be with them, parents know this. But our influence and what we have taught our teens is always with them. So throw your family's values into conversations with your teen any chance you get.

  9. Be a positive role model. Porn is an adult activity that is perfectly legal, but you need to keep it out of your teen’s sight. If your teen should catch you surfing porn sites, you’ll need to talk to him/her about what is appropriate for adults verses what is appropriate for children – don’t just laugh it off.

Tips:

  1. How often do you check your teen's email?

    See the poll results.
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