As a mother, I will never give up on my child. As a mother of a child who has autism, I will never give up hope.
I look into his eyes and I see all the potential that he has to offer to this beautiful world and I just know that one day the world can see what I see.

Follow my blog as I share my life and my experiences as a person who loves someone with autism.

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Potty Mouth?

This is a topic I’ve been meaning to bring up for a while, but didn’t because I felt it may be controversial to some viewers, but I know I’m not alone in this and felt compelled to discuss it and hopefully it’ll be helpful to someone. This blog entry may not be suitable for young viewers.

PENIS! There… I said it and Bryce is fully aware that he has one. Given the right opportunity (mostly when he’s naked for a bath or when it’s available while using the washroom) he’ll touch his penis. I used to be mortified thinking that my little boy was masterbating until I talked to his doctor who reassured me that it’s normal for a child to do that, and it’s because he’s exploring and learning about his body, and not because it’s sexual. Some people even consider this to be a milestone.

Now Bryce hasn’t done this in public (at least not yet) so I can’t give any personal advice on how to stop your child from touching him or herself outside of the house. But from what I read, and I would have to agree with it, it is not something to fuss about it. Just remember that this is a normal process that children go through and it shouldn’t be shun upon in anyway. While I don’t encourage it, I don’t punish him when he does touch himself because I don’t want him to think that something normal is something bad. It’s natural.

With that said, I’ve always referred to Bryce’s penis as his penis. I’ve never taught him an alternative name for his penis like ‘wee-wee’ or ‘doodle’. I’ve always referred to it as a penis, just like I refer to his eyes as his eyes, and nose as nose, etc. While I don’t whip out a ‘all the body parts and things that we don’t want our children to know until they are 30 years old’ book, we have always been very open to the proper names for things.

Any experiences you’d like to share? Let us know!

Thanks for reading,
Tanaya

2 comments:

  1. I'm with you on this one. Though I don't have children of my own, I do have nephews and I have worked with countless children in a professional medical setting and have therefore encountered this many times. As a medical professional, I use proper terms for everything when speaking to patients, even if the patient is a child, to include words such as penis and vagina. If mom and/or dad want to use a different word when they are speaking to the child, that is their prerogative. I'm also a strong believer in Sigmund Freud's Psychosexual Development concept. I agree, both from my medical education and personal experience, that touching ones self is a very normal part of child development and therefore should not be frowned upon.

    Reply
  2. @Matthew Sabatini Thank you so much for sharing your medical professional opinion on this matter.

    Reply

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