You don’t want to gain extra weight, making you uncertain if you want that piece of cheesecake. You know you will not sleep if you have a cup of coffee after dinner. If you are indecisive when asked if you want either of these, and it is set in front of you and you eat and drink it, who’s at fault if you are awake all night because you drank that caffeine.
When trying to teach our kids about consent the best way we can do that is by example. Learn to be definitive in your answers so that when someone asks if you want another Cup of coffee you need to be clear and say, ‘no thank you’, and not be vague.
By giving those precise answers: they don’t have to figure out what it is we need or want.
We have to take ownership of the fact that we may have gained a few extra pounds or couldn’t sleep that night and show our children our answers reflex why we don’t want that coffee or cheesecake.
When training our teenage children, both male and female about consent we need to make sure that we teach our children to not only understand that consent is only when someone says yes, but they need to understand that they need to be concise with their answers. Emphasizing in your everyday examples, that yes means yes and no means no.
Teaching our children to walk away from a situation where someone is vague is the best way to protect them from getting into trouble, but we also need to teach our children to not be the type that is vague as many others will not be taught to walk away.
In no way is it ever ok for someone to take advantage of someone else. Consent is ONLY when someone says yes, and we need to ensure our children learn this fact. However, we need to teach our kids to take ownership of their answers. That they need to be precise when being asked something and if they are agreeing to something they need to say yes and if they are not sure they need to say no.
Enjoy the Journey
Embrace the Learning
Parent With Purpose