Of course not!! Because here’s one of the upsides: the increase of hormones in your body will not only bring about body changes, but it will also bring about some really great feelings. Before puberty, boys and girls may have just been… boys and girls, you know, other kids. But with puberty you will likely start to feel attracted to other kids. 

So that means your viewpoint starts to change. Once Johnny your neighbor was just your neighbor. Then puberty hits and BAM! Johnny is YOUR NEIGHBOR!! OMG!!!! He’s so cute!!!! Even though you have played in the sandbox since you were 3, caught frogs when you were 6 and played video games for hours when your were 8, now you can’t even look Johnny in the eye or say more than “Uhhhhh, yeah, sure” while you inspect your fingernails.

These types of feelings are totally natural. But, remember, in general, puberty starts earlier for girls. So girls may start to have crushes on boys (or girls) before boys feel anything at all. This often leaves boys feeling bewildered and girls feeling dismissed because the feelings are not returned. So, being aware that you could be in different phases of puberty is really helpful. Being aware of the differences can help you to understand another person’s behaviors and, we hope, will make you think about how you might handle things best for you and for the other person.

Awareness is key to surviving puberty. We all survive puberty. But your awareness, mental attitude and humor will determine just how easy surviving it is for you.  

But what if you still have questions? To whom can you turn for help with this stuff? Parents are often a good resource but, understandably a lot of teens don’t feel comfortable discussing this stuff with their parents. If you have another trusted adult in your life, they may be the right person to whom you can turn. Friends are a huge help during this time, but be sure that they have gotten their information from a reliable source… like us. 

Check out the following different posts, for the various questions you may have.

Curious about relationships? Check out boyfriends and girlfriends.

Curious about crushes? Click here.

Curious how to handle the ups and downs? Read about resilience here.

Curious about how babies are made? Find out here.

Curious about how to manage things—reduce your stress? See stress and stress reduction.

At the end of the day, look around you. Everyone goes through changes in their minds and their bodies. It’s part of growing up. It’s totally natural. If you are having a rough time with it, that’s why this website is here to help. Throughout the posts, you will see many, many questions for  you to consider. Those questions help you to understand more about yourself.