my little brother......adults only please?

Question

is it normal for my 8 year old bro. (at this young age) to be masturbating??

Answer 1

i've actually had this converstaion with my husband and we both started when we were young..him younger then me. It's acutally very normal, and don't realize what they are doing. It's people and the public that make it seem unnatural and wrong for it to be done. If your parents know about it, talk about it with them and teach him that what he is doing is private and shouldn't be done in public. at this point i guess it depends on how much you want to tell him. But i wouldn't tell him what he's doing it wrong. Because he's not going to understand, and he'll think he's done something bad when he hasn't.

I guess.. be honest. say "i'll talk to you more about it when your older, but if you going to do that do that in the privacy of your own room. It's not polite to do that infront of others"

.. i was about to post and remember he's 8, so he's in about 3rd grade... i knew about sex long before then and think about this.. in 2-3 more years he'll be taking sexed in 5th & 6th grade.

it might be time to start the converstation of sex.. well not sex perse but the male and female bodies. he might not know exactly what he's doing but he probably knows it's sexual. just be honest. It's a private not a public act.

Answer 2

Yes it is. As a matter of fact pre-schoolers masturbate and they don't even know why or what they are doing. Unfortunately some people yell at them and tell them they are 'dirty', thus setting up trauma for later in life.

It is all part of wanting to feel good - something that is sought after right across the species. In a - mildly - related experiment, scientists wired electrodes into rats' brains near their pleasure centre (yes, there is such a thing in our heads, as well) and gave the rats the option of pressing lever A - which gave them food, or lever B - which gave them a jolt of apparently intense pleasure. The rats literally starved themselves to death because they kept pressing lever B.

So you see - we all want to feel good, even when we don't really understand what is going on.

PS - homeopathy is not going to "cure" him. But being treated as if he has some sort of disease is going to give him all sorts of complexes about himself, his body, his sexuality.

Answer 3

Well 8 may seem young, but these days kids mature at a faster rate, and hormones take over so it is not all that abnormal, nothing to worry about... it could be a passing fascination for him that will develope again as he gets older...

Answer 4

That seems a little young. I didn't really discover that part of my body until I was 13 or 14. You might want to have a talk with your parents. Sometimes,stuff like that is a sign of possible sexual abuse. Not that it's the reason in your brother's case, but just something to keep in mind.

Answer 5

YEA its cool he's not a freak...just chill, but tell him to do it in his room by him self or the bathroom.

I am a father of teen boys and was once 8 years old my self

Answer 6

i suppose this might depend upon your culture and the society in which you live...but in enlightened western societies today it is not abnormal.....and certainly not abnormal in many non-western societies. I do not know why you are concerned unless it is the degree of frequency or the lack of privacy in which he does this...each of which is a cause for concern. however, one person's idea of frequency might not be the same to another. another thing to consider is the stimuli that are causing this boy to feel the need to masturbate...is he exposed to suggestive pix or pornography...or female nudity in his home? if this is something you feel comfortable in discussing with him, do so.
if he is doing this in front of you, tell your Mother, and she will hopefully discuss this with your brother in an appropriate and educational manner.
the last possibility I can think of is that it might be signs of previous sexual abuse, and although this ought not to be overlooked, hopefully that is not the case. All male children in particular explore their penis and find pleasure in doing so...whether they do it obsessively and indiscriminately is another story.

Answer 7

yes,if you ask your family doctors some of them suggest that you have the sex talk before they enter any out side learning(child care kinder garden) WE HAD ARE SEX TALK WITH KAY AT AGE 4 BUT YOU HAVE TO KEEP EXPLAIN SO THEY ALWAYS UNDERSTAND GOOD LUCK

Answer 8

That seems a little early but I mean boys figure out things at different ages. If he is starting to explore then don't talk to him about it - but also be a little leary because he could grow up to be some sex fiend.

Answer 9

yes some babies even start in infancy-absolutely normal but of course if this is done at inappropriate times it should be explained by the mom or dad that times/places this should be done

Answer 10

no but people has done it younger than that my friend started at 5 years old