Puberty
What happens during puberty and the experiences that are normal to have.
Life changes a lot when we are teenagers. Our bodies start growing in every direction, hair pops up all over the place and spots appear ready to be squeezed.
Emotionally we start to become more independent from our parents and too often rely on the advice of our friends or what we hear in the media.
So what’s really going on? Puberty is how we describe the bodily changes and emotions that hit us when we leave childhood. Puberty is natural but it helps to know what’s normal and how to deal with it.
It comes at a different age for everyone, but normally it occurs between the age of 9 and 17. The changes are completely natural and are our body’s response to increased hormones. For girls the body-changing hormone is estrogen. For boys it's testosterone.
Girls notice their breasts might grow, they get pubic hair and have their first period. Boys start growing pubic and facial hair, have a growth spurt and find their penis and testicles (balls) get larger.
Possible changes:
- You become attracted to other people and sexually aroused (horny) easily.
- Your body might change at a different pace to other people’s bodies.
- You can feel self-conscious about the sudden changes.
- You start to notice how your body looks and how other people look.
- You might gain weight and grow taller.
- You grow more body hair.
- You speak in a deeper voice.
- You might get acne or spots.
- You get body odour and start using deodorant.
- You experience mood swings.
- You feel emotional or embarrassed easily.
- You look for more independence (especially from parents!)
- Boys and girls experience different changes during puberty and need different information. Check out our different pages for boys and girls.
Dealing with the changes
You know that puberty means a lot of changes, both physically and emotionally. It’s a difficult time for young people and means some of the biggest changes in life. If you are comfortable with your body and feel confident with yourself it makes puberty much easier.
Going through puberty with confidence:
- Find out more about puberty on websites like this or by asking questions. It helps to know what is happening to your body and emotions.
- Be responsible for your decisions. Think carefully about what will happen if you decide to have sex, to smoke, get drunk or take drugs.
- Enjoy your growing independence but remember that your parents can still help and support you through tough times.
- Feel comfortable with your own body. Everybody is different and nobody really looks like the airbrushed stars in magazines.
- Eat healthy and exercise regularly instead of dieting.
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