In today’s sexually saturated times, it is becoming increasingly difficult to differentiate between normal and abnormal sexual behavior. With teenagers, it is even more difficult to recognize sexually deviant behavior. Often, parents have a hard time recognizing the signs of sex addiction in their teenage children because the teens experience heavy exposure to hypersexual materials on a daily basis and teens often emulate what they see; as a result, some of this behavior has become the norm in ‘teenage’ culture.
The list below is intended to tell parents about what sexual behavior is considered developmentally normal and what are some of the “red flags” that they can look for in identifying deviant sexual behavior in their teens:
Normal Behavior
Among teenagers it is very common to use sexually explicit words in daily conversation
Making obscene gestures and jokes among peers is normal
Using sexual innuendo in conversations
Showing attraction to age appropriate individuals is normal
Having a natural curiosity about sexual acts is normal
Experimenting with masturbation is normal (depends on the frequency)
Displaying affection publicly, like kissing, holding hands etc, is normal
If sexually active, having a stable, long-term girlfriend/boyfriend is normal
Red Flags
Chronic masturbation; having the compulsion to and progressing to masturbate even in public
Exposing private body parts of themselves and others
Looking at pornography for longer periods of time
Being preoccupied with pornography all the time and ignoring other activities
Exposing others, especially younger siblings, to explicit images
Exhibiting voyeuristic behavior
Sending sexually explicit images of themselves to other individuals (Sexting)
Touching others without permission and experiencing sexual gratification from the act (Frottage)
Initiating sexual contact with younger individuals
Coercing or forcing other individuals into committing sexual acts
The red flags will never present themselves as a single characteristic in sexually deviant teens; there will always be a combination of different inappropriate behavior in sexually addicted teenagers. You have to carefully look for the above mentioned red flags to determine whether your child is addicted to sex or not.
If you observe any of the abnormal behaviors mentioned above, then contact us immediately (800.584.4629). STAR Guides Wilderness has sexually specific treatment programs for teens struggling from different types of deviant sexual behavior issues.
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