How do I explain periods to my little sister? She wont ask my mom!?

Question

My little sister wants to know about periods, and babies. Sure i got "the talk" but i dont know how to tell her what i know, and how much to tell her please help! no smart alec remarks please, i just want a little conversation starter

She is 11 years old.

Answer 1

First of all, consider yourself lucky that you even got "the talk", when I asked my mom what periods were, she -greatly embarassed- just told me it's "when your thing bleeds". Fortunately, there was the standard science class lessons on reproduction. Not wanting my own sister to be as confused as I was when starting (some years after my failed attempt at finding out from mom), I simply took her aside and explained it last year when I noticed that she'd hit puberty (age 10). I told her, basically, that now she was developing and if one day she noticed blood in her underwear or the toilet, it was nothing to be worried about and explained about putting on pads, and told her about how long a standard cycle was. If your sister is 11, it's probably best to go ahead and explain it soon, as my own sister is the same age, and just last month came in from school, went to the bathroom, and a few minutes later calmly informed me she needed clean underwear and a pad.

As for the subject of where babies come from...well, I was nearly 11 myself when she was born, so mom took me to the library and checked me out a few books to explain it. As I recall, I found the whole thing completely bizarre, but my head didn't explode or anything, so I guess it's an ok age to learn about it. Since she's not having another baby, mom hasn't really been forthcoming on the birds and bees this time around, so I've been explaining it as non-graphically as possible. She knows the proper names for male and female parts, and what needs to be done to make babies, and since she likes to watch soap operas, the subject of birth control and condoms has come up. Birth control was fairly self-explanatory, but she did once ask what a condom was, and while mom was just staring in shock, I went ahead and explained. Li'l sis processed the information and went back to watching tv without another thought to it, so I'm guessing she's ok.

Hope you get something helpful out of all this rambling.

Answer 2

Depending on how old she is, start talking to her about the simple differences between men and women: genitals, ability to have babies, breast and hips developing, etc. This is a really touchy subject, but there are some books out there for kids. "Where Did I Come From?" by Peter Mayle is a good starter. You can probably pick it up at the local library and def on Amazon.com. That's how my mom started talking to me and it has funny cartoon illustrations to make it not so embarrassing.

Answer 3

Explain to her that it happens to all women every month make her feel okay about it and let her know she is not the only one it happens to. Take her to a store or to your bathroom and show her different things to use during the time of the month i.e. pads, tampons etc. Just let her know how to take care of herself without ever having an embarrassing accident. The baby convo is different because you have to judge whether she is old enough to have the talk about babies

Answer 4

Explain it simply.Girls have periods instead of having babies. Show her how to use a pad which is pretty important.What do girls do at school.I know thisis off but show your sister the specialbins used in toilets for disposing of pads. At least she has a sister to turn to for the talk.

Answer 5

http://www.knowmycycle.com/?WT.mc_ID=10005&WT.srch=1&WTmc_ev=click
Visit the web site.

Answer 6

it depends how old she is