Video:How to Talk to Your Teen About Birth Control

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Transcript:How to Talk to Your Teen About Birth Control

Hi, my name is Patricia O'Laughlin and I'm a Marriage and Family Therapist with TherapyForParents.com. Today I'm speaking to you on behalf of About.com on how to talk to your teen about birth control.

Have a Calm Discussion When You Talk to Your Teen About Birth Control

When talking to your teen about birth control, it's important to remain calm. I know it's not easy to think that your teen might be having sex or might be thinking about it. But this is an important conversation to have. Here are 5 points to consider when talking to your teen about birth control.

The first thing is be familiar with the types of birth control that are available. Talk to you teen about them and let them have some choice and say in the matter.

The second thing is reinforce to your teen the responsibility of both people involved to use birth control and to support it. Let your teen know that sometimes they might find themselves in situations where one person doesn't agree with using birth control. Talk to them about what their plan is to handle this situation and why it is important to have a plan. Talk to them about how pregnancy can happen and how it often happens unexpectedly.

Tell Your Teen to Remember Birth Control in the Heat of the Moment

The third thing is talk to your teen about how hard it can be to stop and use birth control once the desire to have sex has started. The teenage body especially responds to touch. And once that desire gets going, it's very hard to stop in the moment.

The fourth thing is talk to them about rationalization and things their mind might do to talk them out of using birth control. Talk to them about how physical sensations can lead to rationalization and things they can do to help themselves calm down in the moment and stop so that they can use birth control.

The fifth thing is talk about what types of options are available, should your teen fail to use birth control. While these options are not always easy, there are options available after a teen has unprotected sex.

A lot of parents find that talking about birth control is difficult, however it is really important to do. I hope that these tips help you. They can help you keep your child safe.

Thank you so much for watching. For more information, visit us on the web at About.com.