Puberty Blues: How to Deal with Your Body’s Changes

Puberty doesn’t just affect your sexual health – i.e. get your body ready for making babies – it also impacts your overall wellbeing. Out of nowhere, your jeans no longer fit, your legs rub together when you run and pores are taking over your face – what’s happening to you? If you’ve ever felt out of step with your body, you’re not alone.

 

Some of the changes that come with growing up are pretty cool. Guys become more muscular, and girls start developing breast – all things we appreciate. However, before, during and after puberty, your body goes through other changes you might not expect, and this can take its toll on your wellness. You notice that your bum and stomach starts to grow, or you find that you’re suddenly taller and skinnier than you once were. Sometimes, you get a temporary layer of fat during puberty, and this is so your body can prepare itself for a growth spurt. Other people find they fill out permanently, even if they exercise and eat healthy foods. Then there are those who chow down on everything in sight and still stay skinny.

 

Eventually, all these changes balance out and you adjust to your new body, but it can get some getting used to the way it moves and works. What happens to you physically during puberty can influence how you feel about your body and yourself for a long time to come. It’s perfectly normal to be worried or even upset by the changes you go through; lots of teens base their self-image on how their bodies feel and perform. Even minor details, such as the way you smell, change when you go through puberty, and this is a perfectly normal part of growing up. Still, there are things you can do to help yourself adjust physically and emotionally.

 

1. Don’t compare: It’s natural to look at your friends for comparison, but it’s not a good idea. Everyone develops differently and at different times, meaning that there’s no point comparing yourself to others. You might have had a growth spurt before everyone else and think you’re too tall, but your friends are probably thinking they’re too small. It’s usually hardest for the people who develop first or last. Also, don’t compare yourself to celebrities and models. With clever airbrushing, hair and makeup, anyone looks that good in the media. In reality, however, no one looks that good.

 

2. Treat your body well: Part of developing a mind and life of your own means making educated choices about food and exercise. Plus, if you eat right and exercise, you can take some control over how your body turns out. Exercise also boosts your mood, which can be helpful if your changing body has you feeling sad or confused. You don’t have to join a gym or start an insane fitness regime; just go for a walk, play with your dog, or throw a Frisbee with your friends to reap the mood-boosting benefits of exercise. Taking yoga, martial arts classes, or other activities that involve focusing on how the body stretches and moves can help you become familiar with your body.

 

3. Befriend your body: It takes time to get to know your new body, much in the same way that your relationships with your friends evolve and grow. Just like you know your friends’ secrets, you also see a side to your body that no one else does. However, that doesn’t mean you know your body, or see it accurately. You can spend ages focusing on your sticking-out stomach in the mirror, but all this time you spend obsessing actually distorts your view of reality. The truth is, other people won’t notice it like you do.

Categories: body, Comparison, exercise, Friends, growth spurt, nbsp, puberty

Prepared for Puberty: What Changes Should You Expect?

Ok, they’ve probably taught you about this in school, but in case you weren’t listening or were too worried about what your friends were saying to pay close attention, let’s talk about puberty. During your teenage years, your body begins to develop and change more than it will at any other time in your life – except when you were a baby – and this is known as puberty. The important thing to note here is that everyone goes through these changes, and it’s perfectly normal. Still, it’s a good idea to know what to expect, so you don’t get freaked out when these changes occur.

 

At a certain age during your adolescent years (between seven and 13 in girls and nine and 15 in guys), your brain releases a gonadotropin-releasing hormone, or GnRH, which starts the puberty process. The GnRH travels to a gland under your brain known as the pituitary gland, and this releases two more puberty hormones into your bloodstream; luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). Although both guys and girls will have both of these hormones in their bodies, your sex will determine how these hormones go to work on different parts of the body. For guys, these hormones signal the production of testosterone and sperm, while FSH and LH stimulate girls’ ovaries to begin producing another hormone called oestrogen. Both of these processes prepare your body for reproduction.

 

Another change that happens during puberty is a growth spurt. For about two or three years, your body rapidly grows – even up to four or more inches in the space of a year. This will be the last time you grow in your life so once your growth spurt ends, this is your new adult height. Your body will also change in shape as well as size. Guys, your shoulders will widen and your body will become more muscular. You’ll also notice that your voice becomes deeper, your testes get bigger and your penis lengthens and widens. Some guys do experience a bit of breast development, but this often goes away by the end of puberty.

 

Girls, you’ll probably become curvier, gaining more weight on your hips and bigger breasts. This begins with a little swelling under your nipple, and you may find that one breast grows more quickly than the other. However, time will soon even things out. It’s perfectly normal to experience occasional soreness under the nipples as your breasts start to enlarge. It’s also completely healthy and common to notice an increase in body fat, so don’t try to go on a diet to go back to your pre-puberty weight – that was a kid’s weight, of course you’re not going to weigh the same! If you ever have questions or concerns about your weight, talk it over with your doctor. About two to three years after your breasts start growing, you’ll have your first period.

 

One change that both guys and girls go through is finding hair in new places. In the beginning, you’ll notice light and sparse hair growing under your arms and in your pubic area (on and around your genitals). As you go through puberty, this hair becomes longer, thicker, heavier, and darker. Eventually, guys also start to grow hair on their faces. Speaking of faces, you may also develop acne, due to the hormonal changes in your body. This normally disappears during adulthood, but until then you may have acne on your face, your upper back, or your upper chest. It helps to keep your skin clean, and your doctor will be able to offer some suggestions for clearing up acne.

Categories: body, change, girls, growth spurt, growth spurts, guys, hormones, puberty