Puberty

What is puberty?
Puberty is when a child's body begins to develop and change as they become an adult. Puberty is the time in life when a boy or girl becomes sexually mature. It is a process that usually happens between ages 10 and 14 for girls and ages 12 and 16 for boys. It causes physical changes, and affects boys and girls differently.

বয়ঃসন্ধি (ইংরেজি: Puberty) একটি সুনির্দিষ্ট প্রক্রিয়া যার মাধ্যমে একটি শিশুর শরীর একজন প্রাপ্তবয়স্ক মানুষের শরীরে রূপান্তরিত হয় এবং প্রজননের সক্ষমতা লাভ করে। মস্তিষ্ক থেকে গোনাডে (ডিম্বাশয় ও শুক্রাশয়) হরমোন সংকেত যাবার মাধ্যমে এটির সূচনা ঘটে।

Stages of puberty:
The average age for girls to begin puberty is 11, while for boys the average age is 12.But it's different for everyone, so don't worry if your child reaches puberty before or after their friends. It's completely normal for puberty to begin at any point from the ages of 8 to 14. The process can take up to 4 years.

Late or early puberty:
Children who begin puberty either very early (before the age of 8) or very late (after 14) should see a doctor just to make sure they're in good health.

Signs of puberty:

First signs of puberty in girls

1. The first sign of puberty in girls is usually that their breasts begin to develop.
   
2. It's normal for breast buds to sometimes be very tender or for one breast to start to develop several months before the other one.
   
3. Pubic hair also starts to grow, and some girls may notice more hair on their legs and arms.
   

Later signs of puberty in girls
After a year or so of puberty beginning, and for the next couple of years:

1. Girls' breasts continue to grow and become fuller.
2. Around 2 years after beginning puberty, girls usually have their first period.
   
3. Pubic hair becomes coarser and curlier.
4. Underarm hair begins to grow – some girls also have hair in other parts of their body, such as their top lip, and this is completely normal.
   
5. Girls start to sweat more.
6. Girls often get acne – a skin condition that shows up as different types of spots, including whiteheads, blackheads and pus-filled spots called pustules.
   
7. Girls have a white vaginal discharge.
8. Girls go through a growth spurt – from the time their periods start, girls grow 5 to 7.5cm (2 to 3 inches) annually over the next year or two, then reach their adult height.
9. Most girls gain weight (which is normal) as their body shape changes – girls develop more body fat along their upper arms, thighs and upper back; their hips grow rounder and their waist gets narrower.
   

First signs of puberty in boys

1. The first sign of puberty in boys is usually that their testicles get bigger and the scrotum begins to thin and redden.
   
2. Pubic hair also starts to appear at the base of the penis.

Later signs of puberty in boys
After a year or so of puberty starting, and for the next couple of years:

1. The penis and testicles grow and the scrotum gradually becomes darker (read more about penis health).
   
2. Pubic hair becomes thicker and curlier.
3. Underarm hair starts to grow.
4. Boys start to sweat more.
5. Breasts can swell slightly temporarily – this is normal and not the same as "man-boobs“.
   
6. Boys may have "wet dreams" (involuntary ejaculations of semen as they sleep).
   
7. Their voice "breaks" and gets permanently deeper – for a while, a boy might find his voice goes very deep one minute and very high the next.
   
8. Boys often develop acne – a skin condition that shows up as different types of spots, including whiteheads, blackheads and pus-filled spots called pustules.
   
9. Boys go through a growth spurt and become taller by an average of 7 to 8cms, or around 3 inches a year, and more muscular.

Mental health in puberty
Puberty can be a difficult time for children. They're coping with changes in their body, and possibly acne or body odor as well, at a time when they feel self-conscious. Puberty can also be an exciting time, as children develop new emotions and feelings. But the "emotional rollercoaster" they're on can have psychological and emotional effects, such as:

• Unexplained mood swings
• Low self-esteem
• Aggression
• Depression

Why do these emotions occur?

The physical changes that occur during puberty give rise to a variety of social and emotional changes. First, the ongoing physical maturation process directly affects body and brain to alter children's needs, interests, and moods. Then, as children start to look and act differently, an array of social influences further accelerate the social and emotional changes children experience. The physical changes associated with puberty become the basis for new emotional experiences. For example, it is common for parents to note their children become more moody and irritable during this period of their lives. This moodiness is commonly attributed to the sudden and fluctuating hormonal levels, or "raging hormones". It is certainly true that sex hormones are powerful chemical agents that can affect mood. During puberty, the body is adjusting to these fluctuating hormone levels and this fluctuation does create mood swings. However, there are several other physical causes accounting for increased moodiness apart from fluctuating hormones.

Lack of Sleep

There are both physical and social reasons for why sleep deficits may occur during puberty. The body's sleep-wake cycle is dependent upon a "circadian rhythm" which in turn, is influenced by hormones. During puberty, a natural shift occurs in a teen's circadian rhythm that causes them to feel more fully alert later at night. Unfortunately, they must still rise early for school and other activities. As a result, they get less sleep than they require. This lack of sleep can increase irritability and decrease concentration ability, and contribute to children suddenly finding it difficult to complete tasks that were once simple. This new struggle only adds to their frustration and moodiness.

Adolescent Brains Are Still Maturing

A second factor that complicates adolescent moodiness is that their brains are still physical maturing: Children's brains are not fully developed until they are in their early 20’s. This incomplete brain development is responsible for much of the cognitive and emotional immaturity that can so easily frustrate parents. Cognitive immaturity refers to youths' still-developing thinking skills which are not yet as
sophisticated and reliable as those characteristic of adults. Cognitively immature people lack good judgment. Immature thinking result in a youths' having difficulty thinking things through so as to anticipate the consequences of their actions and make informed decisions or choices based upon those anticipated consequences. As a result, youth easily appear as impulsive, hasty, and even selfish. The brain's incomplete physical development is also in large part responsible for youthful emotional immaturity.

Youth have more difficulty than mature adults in regulating their emotions and putting events in proper perspective. Emotion regulation is an important ability because it enables people to consciously control (within limits) how strongly they will feel emotions like anger, joy or fear. Such control helps people limit the emotional highs and lows that are commonly called "mood swings." To make things worse, during periods of high emotional arousal, the brain's thinking capacity is temporarily further diminished.

What can parents do?

Parents need to know about children's still-immature brain structure, sleep alterations and changing hormones and the emotional and cognitive immaturity that results from this still developing state so that they can regard their children's behavior in proper perspective. Though adolescent children may become moody and make poor choices, they are not doing this purely out of spite, but rather because they cannot be substantially otherwise at this point in their development. Despite their resistance, parents need to continue to provide their adolescent children with clear behavior guidelines and set and enforce age-appropriate behavior limits. Through doing so parents provide children with the proper mixture of safety and freedom they require to enable and enhance their further growth. Children need enough room to express their individuality and to practice (and sometimes fail) independent decision-making AND they need to be protected from the consequences of their worst decisions in order for them to thrive.