The Guide To Puberty
Puberty In Girls
AKA: Adolescence, becoming a woman, growing up, reaching sexual maturity, sprouting.
What is it and when will it happen to me?
When the time is right for you, your body sends a signal from your pituitary gland in your brain to your ovaries for puberty to begin. During puberty, your body is going to change.
The average age girls start puberty is between 9 and 13, but many start younger or a lot older than that.
How will my body change?
• Your breasts will start to grow. In the beginning, they may hurt sometimes and be tender when they are touched. But this will go away as your breasts become rounder and fuller. Many girls have breasts that develop unevenly; one breast may be bigger than the other. This is perfectly normal. Rapid development of breasts can lead to spoke-like stretch marks, but these will lighten with time. You may need to start thinking about wearing a bra to support your breasts. Talk to your mother, an older sister, or an adult that you feel comfortable with about buying some bras.
• Most girls have a growth spurt the year before they get their menstrual period. Your feet and hands will usually be the first parts to grow, and then the rest of your body will follow.
During puberty, your hips will get wider as your waist gets smaller. You will develop a healthy, curvy shape. Talk to your health care provider if you are not growing and changing by age 13. It's important to get check-ups during puberty to make sure that your height and weight are normal.
• You will start to grow hair around your pubic area (around your vagina) and under your arms. This usually happens after you start to develop breasts, but for many girls, pubic hair starts first. You will probably get pubic hair before you get underarm hair.
There are no health reasons to do so, but some girls simply prefer not to have underarm hair. It is up to you if you want to shave. Talk to your mom or another adult that you feel comfortable talking to about this.
• Your vagina will change shape, with the inner lips (labia minora) getting larger. You’ll also start getting vaginal discharge, which can be a sign that you’ll soon start your periods.
Most girls notice a yellow or white stain in the crotch of their underpants as they go through puberty. This is a normal fluid that helps clean and moisten your vagina.
• Your skin may get oilier. You may get some pimples and acne. This is because of more hormones and oil glands that become more active during puberty.You can treat acne with medications that you can buy in a drugstore, or get from your primary care clinician or a dermatologist (a doctor that treats skin problems) if the problem is more serious. Birth control pills that you take by mouth often make acne better.
• Your sweat glands will become more active during puberty. This can cause perspiration odor. This is a good time to go shopping for deodorant, to help fight the odor.
• You will begin your period. Your menstrual period feels like liquid flowing slowly, with starts and stops, out of your vagina. And this is exactly what happens during your menstrual period. Blood flows slowly out of your vagina. Although it may seem like a lot of blood, only a small amount is really released at a time. It is normal to see small clots of blood on the toilet paper when you urinate.
What should I wear for feminine protection during my menstrual period?
There are two basic types of feminine protection products: external protection and internal protection. External protection (like pads and pantiliners) is placed or attached to the crotch of your underpants to absorb your menstrual flow after it leaves the body, while internal protection (like tampons) is inserted into the vagina to catch or absorb your menstrual flow before it leaves the body.
Both internal and external protection is safe. There is a risk of Toxic Shock Syndrome with tampons, but the risk is very low when used correctly. You should read the directions on the package and change them frequently (every 4-8 hours). Make your decision about which form of protection to use based on whatever you feel most comfortable using! Talk about the different types of feminine protection with an adult you feel comfortable with. This will help you make your decision about which kind you will want to use.
Can I swim and do normal activities when I have my menstrual period?
Yes! People used to think that you shouldn't swim, play sports, or do other normal activities when you had your menstrual period. Now, people know that this is not true. If you have the right type of menstrual protection, you can do anything! In fact, swimming and playing sports may make you feel better. Other girls prefer to be less active when they have a heavy flow or cramps. You will probably be most comfortable if you use a tampon when you swim or play sports.
Puberty In Boys
What is it?
Pubescent boys can have a really hard time feeling like they fit in. That's because of the huge variation in the rate of development in boys. Two fourteen-year-old boys can look very different from one another physically. For instance, one fourteen-year-old boy can have lots of body hair, a deep voice, and be very tall, while his classmate might still be short, have no chest and other body hair, and still have a childlike voice. So why and how do boys change into men? The answer is in the hormones. Even in the womb, a male fetus contains small amounts of the "male" hormone—testosterone.
What happens?
• During puberty a boy's testicles will get bigger, and as the testicles get bigger they hang lower and become more noticeable in the scrotum than they were before. That is why people say that a boy's balls will drop, but they've already been in his scrotum since long before puberty.
• His penis and testicles will get larger, and his scrotum will appear slightly redder/darker. One testicle will hang lower than the other to prevent collision with the other testicle, and which testicle is lower may change. The normal penis size depends on how far into puberty a boy is.
It would not be uncommon for a 14 year old boy who hasn't started puberty to have a 3 inch penis, and it would not be uncommon for a 14-15 year old boy who is far along in puberty to have a 6-7 inch penis. The average adult size is 6 inches.
• Their body will start producing more sex hormones, so they have more sexual feelings and more erections. Stiffies can appear when they're not even aroused (turned on), and sometimes at the most awkward moments. This can be embarrassing, but usually no one notices.
• Boys will begin to get erections (this is when the penis fills with blood and becomes hard). Sometimes erections happen when boys think about sexual things or they can happen for no reason at all. Boys also may experience something called nocturnal emissions (or wet dreams). This is when the penis becomes erect when a boy is sleeping and he ejaculates.
When a boy ejaculates, semen — the fluid that contains sperm — comes out of the penis. That's why they're called wet dreams — they happen when you're sleeping and your underwear or the bed might be a little wet when you wake up. Wet dreams occur less often as boys move through puberty and they eventually stop.
• Puberty can normally start in boys between the ages of 11 and 15 and normally end between 15 and 18. During this time a boy will develop hair around his penis, on his scrotum, under his armpits, and start to grow facial hair.
• Your body also fills out and changes shape during puberty. A boy's shoulders will grow wider and his body will become more muscular.
• Their voice will start to sound lower. The tone might wobble, crackle or be difficult to control at first - this is what people mean when they talk about boys' voices breaking.
• Skin gets oilier and pimples usually start showing up when puberty begins, and you may get them throughout the teenage years. You might see pimples on your face, your upper back, or your upper chest.
Don't squeeze, pick, or pop your pimples. Your doctor can also offer suggestions for clearing up acne. The good news is that acne usually gets a lot better as you get older.
• Some boys get a swelling underneath their nipples, which can look like the start of breasts - they shouldn't panic though, they're not, and it's only temporary.
If I start late, am I normal?
There's no way to know when you will start puberty, how long you will take to finish, and what will happen first, it's different for everyone.
