Have you had the THE TALK yet with your tween? Are you prepared for it?
Or….
Are your knees knocking in nervousness right now at the prospect? 
I admit, I was more than a bit nervous about having THE TALK with Ariel. I spent countless hours researching “the hows” and “the whens” (I did know “the whys” and “the whos”!) I wanted to be as prepared as I could for THE TALK and I wanted to make sure I was giving her the correct information, in the right amounts, at the right time.
One of the sites I found most helpful was Kotex–First Period Talk. With their outline and an easy to follow plan, accompanied by lots of great information, I felt well-equipped to have the conversation within two weeks (their suggested time frame–and one that worked really well for me, since I’m a procrastinator at times!)
The steps as outlined by Kotex:
- First Period Facts: Arm yourself with all the facts about periods and be ready for any question. You might learn something too!
- Prepare for the Talk: See period talk Q+A for different ages, learn fun ways to break the ice, get tips from other moms and Pick Your Day.
- The Right Product for Her: Your tween has unique period needs. Which products are right for her?
I knew that the time was right for the conversation. My tween needed for me to have this conversation with her. I knew I didn’t want her getting misinformation from friends–or worse, starting her period and not knowing what was happening. That would have been so frightening!
So I followed the outline, read everything I could find, prepped a “First Period Kit” for Ariel, and set a date for when I knew we would have a block of dedicated time for a discussion. I also purchased a few books that I thought would be good private time reading for her later. (This is part of “knowing” your tween. Ariel is a reader and has great comprehension, so I knew that books would be an easy way to provide more detailed information without the embarrassment factor. Maybe your tween would be the same way.)
And then it happened. I built on previous conversations we’d had, like where do babies come from and how did they get there. It wasn’t easy, but it wasn’t nearly as hard as I had thought it would be. She wasn’t thrilled about this new bit of information about growing up, but she agreed it wasn’t the end of the world.
And the funny part…. I showed her the First Period Kit I had put together. I originally had pulled out some regular liners and pads. When I compared those adult products with the smaller, tween-sized products from U by Kotex Tween, she started laughing in relief. I shared a few stories about how I had felt like I was wearing a huge diaper (back in the dark ages of my early teens!) and how I just knew that everyone could tell I was wearing a pad. And then I shared how much I would have enjoyed using the cute (yes, they are cute!) and perfectly sized products that she now had available to her.
And she agreed.
And I let out a huge sigh that the conversation was started. Because, you know, I don’t want this to be a one-and-done conversation. I hope that this is just a small part of many conversations we will have about being a woman. I want Ariel to come to me with questions she has about growing up, about body changes, about hygiene, about (gulp!) boys. We’ve shared some of those conversations already and I believe there will be many, many more.
I think being a woman is pretty cool and I believe that U by Kotex Tween products will make this part of being a woman easier and more enjoyable.
Do you need some motivation to have your conversation with your tween? Here’s a great video by Kotex and Nickelodeon ParentsConnect featuring actress Aimee Teegarden discussing her great relationship with her mom and how that eased the transition time for her.
I think that my relationship with Ariel is similar to Aimee’s relationship with her mom. We’re very open about things and talk frequently (lots of times in the car!) about many different parts of life. I hope that now that we’ve had this beginning conversation, many more will happen.
I was so glad to be chosen to be a U by Kotex Tween Mom Ambassador and believe that over the next six months as I participate in this campaign, I’ll be learning a lot about various aspects of tween maturation and I’ll be sharing those details and topics with you. I hope that if you have any questions about any of this information, you’ll ask. You can certainly ask me anything and if I don’t know the answer, I’ll be glad to research it and find out. And of course, the experts over at Kotex have lots of answers on their site and even have a place where you or your tween can ask a question and a team of health experts, moms, and peers will answer it.
Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a Brand Ambassador Campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of U by Kotex Tween and received products to facilitate my post and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.
