Understanding Adolescent sexuality

Oct 13, 2020 Leader Leading Health 0

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In September, we had a public discussion titled, “A culturally appropriate discussion about sexuality for adolescents and parents” and the response was overwhelming.  Many parents confessed to being shy to talk to their children about sexuality because in their words, “how do you discuss sex with children?” Others were uncertain when to initiate the discussion and during a poll carried out during the discussion, majority agreed that through upper primary and secondary was the opportune time to discuss anything remotely similar to sexuality.

Sexuality is not only about sex; on the contrary, sex is just one component of sexuality.  Human sexuality refers to how people experience and express themselves as sexual beings.  It includes; sexual feelings, thoughts, attractions and behaviors with ourselves and towards other people. It is a completely normal thing and starts during adolescence during which the experience is most intense.  Because these changes are only transient, many parents, by the time their children are adolescents, have forgotten their own years of teenage turbulence and as such, are impatient with their teenagers to the extent of shouting and hitting at them, building resentment from both parties.

In many countries (and in the Mulago Friday Adolescent Clinic) adolescents have an annual wellness check with their doctors or people specially trained to handle them.  These checks are synonymous with checkups we take our babies and young children for.  Unfortunately, wellness checks are not standard practice in Uganda and in most African countries.  

While this may be fine for children 5 to 7 years, it is important to have annual wellness checks after a child turns 8 years because that is when puberty and, shortly after, adolescence sets in.  These phases of life are characterized by unfathomable rapid changes in all aspects of a child.  The visible transformations are only a small part of what is happening: rapid growth, which we call growth spurts, changes in body structure, (boys become more muscular while girls’ breast enlarge, hips widen and there is more fat deposit in many parts of their bodies), growth of pubic and facial hairs, breaking voices, changes in the genitals and the infamous body odour.  

At the same time, there is an increase in production by the brain, of chemicals (hormones) concerned with sexual maturation. This phenomenon happens in all mammals. These hormones cause maturation of the organs concerned with reproduction. Young animals at this stage leave their parents to start their own lives and families.  The ones that do not leave the family begin to fight with their parents: males fight to take over control from their fathers and females fight with their mothers and older female relatives to win the attention of the alpha male.

These behaviours are driven by a tiny part of the brain called the amygdala.  The amygdala is also called the primitive brain because it controls these animal instincts.  This is exactly the same thing that happens in adolescents.  As they mature sexually, the amygdala tells them that they are adults, ready to take on the world and to contribute to the survival of the human species. They truly believe they can survive on their own and know what is best for them.  It is the reason teenagers seem to be irrational, resisting advice from parents and authority, taking risks like escaping from home, meeting strangers, reckless driving, experimenting with drugs, alcohol, smoking and sex etc.

Many of them repeat these behaviours even after being punished for it. Even those who seem to be well behaved at one time or the other contemplate getting involved in these behaviours.  Teenagers also typically experience mood swings; a child who was laughing a few minutes earlier is suddenly in tears or responding rudely to a basic request. In addition, they find it hard to focus on even the most basic assignments and some who had been performing exceptionally in primary school, get to secondary school and suddenly see a decline in their academic performance.

Parents and other authority figures in their lives often wonder why people who seem so grown up are generally behaving almost as if they were animals; not making rational decisions. The reason has a scientific explanation.  Humans, unlike animals, are able to make rational decisions, plan for the future, focus their attention, predict consequences of their actions, as well as control their impulses and emotional reaction. 

The part of the brain concerned with these complex functions is the prefrontal cortex.  It is what adults use by default. In adolescence up to mid-20s, however, the prefrontal cortex is undergoing massive transformation and development, consequently, they are unable to control their actions, moods and emotions as efficiently as adults do.

This difference between the adult and adolescent brain makes it important that adults understand that young people are not as capable as they are of thinking of the consequences and therefore may not exhibit the most rational behaviour. It is also important for adolescents to understand that they are normal for wanting to do the very things that deep down they know they should not be doing. They also should know that adults have their best interest in mind and are advising them in the hope that they will be successful adults in future.

By Dr. Miriam O. Laker-Oketta

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