Gwyneth Paltrow x Cara Natterson: How to Have Awkward Conversations with Our Kids
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A mother and son sharing moments at the beach
|Bruce And Rebecca Meissner / Sto
“There’s no secret sauce to parenting that parents need to know that kids shouldn’t be let in on,” says pediatrician Cara Natterson, MD. After GP read Natterson’s newest book, Decoding Boys, they sat down to talk about different ways to approach difficult and awkward conversations with our children—about, say, puberty. Natterson explains why puberty is occurring earlier and earlier in boys and girls and why it’s generally more common and easier for girls to talk about what they experience during puberty. She breaks down the chemistry of the limbic system to help us understand boys’ decision-making processes. She suggests ways that we can all address body image insecurities and social pressure. And: what to do if your son might be a late bloomer, how to talk about porn, how to empower our boys with healthy definitions of masculinity. These conversations are always going to feel uncomfortable for everyone, especially at first. But the most helpful thing we can do, says Natterson, is communicate directly, clearly—and repeatedly.
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