Youth Show Friends Porn

“My 9-year-old son told me our neighbor boy, his friend, described pornographic scenes he saw in detail to him. My son is traumatized.”

I read the above on a Facebook page I follow. The parent went on to say she was caught off guard. Even though she’s talked with her child about sex and puberty, she was waiting to talk about pornography. Below the original post, parent after parent described similar circumstances with their children.

Youth show their friends porn.

“Yes, it happened to my 10-year-old at a sleepover. I was not prepared and neither was the other mom.”

“My child was introduced to porn by a classmate at school at age nine. We didn’t find out until our child was 12.”

“My daughter was exposed to adult contact at 11.”

“I had to talk to my neighbor about something similar. It’s so hard when the children grew up together and you now have to talk with them about this.”

Friends show friends porn. Unfortunately, this behavior is common and can be devastating for the child and heartbreaking for parents.

Children are typically exposed to pornography one of three ways. They accidentally stumble across it, they are curious and do a search and find it, or a friend shows them. Youth show their friends porn. It’s an unfortunate fact, but a fact nonetheless. So we need to be mentally prepared and be proactive in our parenting.  

Start Conversations Early

We can be proactive by starting conversations about pornography and its dangers at a very young age. Pornography is everywhere and its preying on our children. (Do I sound like a broken record? Yes, I’ve mentioned this before, and I will continue to state it as long as the pornography industry exists.) Therefore, our best offense and defense is talking about pornography with our children.

We shouldn’t be afraid of the conversations. We warn our children about other dangers in the world. Don’t put your finger in an electrical socket. Don’t touch a hot stove. Add one more . . . Don’t look at bad pictures, ones that show areas that should be covered (the underwear zone) or are intended to make us think inappropriate thoughts. Fill in the blank with correct anatomical terminology and adapt the conversation to your child’s age and maturity level.

More Advice

In the post I mentioned above, after her child told her what happened, the parent told him how proud she was of him for telling her. The parent reminded her son that curiosity was normal but the internet has confusing and dangerous things.  

In the comment section, parents offered fantastic advice to this hurting parent.

“Remind him you are available to listen if he has follow-up questions or just wants to talk.”

“Let him lead the conversation, listen, and allow him to express his feelings.”

“Be open and honest. Explain sex using correct anatomical terminology, and explain when it’s appropriate to have sex.”

“Explain that pornography is not the same as real life. It’s unrealistic, objectifying, and violent.”

“Be careful of other children who show pornography. That’s how child-on-child abuse begins.”

“Seek out a counselor for your child, if necessary.”

One parent suggested role play, an excellent idea. Role playing provides children with practical tools for future use. Whether your child has been exposed to pornography or not, sit with him or her and go over several scenarios in which they may be exposed to pornography. Then brainstorm some responses.

Here’s one example: If a friend says, “Hey, look at this,” and holds a device out for you to view, what will you do? After listening to your child’s response, you may suggest that instead of just looking at the device, they could first ask, “What are you going to show me?” If the friend indicates the video or photo may be inappropriate, empower your child to say, “No, thank you. I don’t want to see it.”

Youth will show their friends porn. Your child is likely to be exposed. So, help your child be ready and prepare yourself for the inevitable. You’ve got this!

A common method of exposure to pornography is a friend. Youth show friends porn. Find advice here on preparing your child for this possibility. Youth Show Friends Porn #fightthenewdrug #hopefulmom Share on X

Other Resources

If your child has already been exposed to pornography, subscribe at Hopeful Mom to receive the FREE download, 7 Steps After Your Child Sees Porn. I also recommend purchasing the two downloadable booklets in the “My Child Saw Porn” series available on the shop page.

See this link for books recommendations to help you have discussions with your children.

We recently added a page of family game recommendations. Games are an excellent way to interact without screens and build relationships with your children. We hope to add more to the list, so send me your favorite family games.

If you need a coach, someone to help you process what you are thinking or feeling, I’ve partnered with 423Communities for coaching/counseling.

Lastly, if you live in the Leesburg, Florida area, consider attending the A21 Walk for Freedom event on October 19^th. There will be several speakers enlightening us about human trafficking, globally and locally. I will be speaking on the link between pornography and human trafficking. Hope to see you there!