Puberty

Puberty is when a child's body starts to develop and change as they become an adult. It is the time when your hormone levels increase, creating changes in your body. Puberty can start at different ages, but generally between 9 and 15 years. The average age for a person with female anatomical and physiological characteristics to start puberty is 11 years, while for males the average age is 12. Typical females anatomical and physiological characteristics start to develop breasts and their periods. Typical males anatomical and physiological characteristics develop a deeper voice and facial hair will start to appear. It is different for everyone.

Puberty makes you grow taller, grow hair in new places, develop breasts, start periods, and develops the vulva. People do not talk much about your vulva changing during puberty. Before puberty people have smaller inner labia which you cannot easily see. When puberty starts, they grow. It is common for one side of your labia to develop before the other one. The thought that your body is changing, and that your vulva looks a bit different, can take a little while to get used to.

The first signs of puberty in persons with male genitalia are usually that their testicles get bigger and the scrotum begins to thin and redden. Gradually, the scrotum becomes darker. Pubic hair also starts to grow at the base of the penis, which increases in amount and becomes thicker and curlier. They may start to have "wet dreams", the involuntary ejaculation of semen during sleep. Your voice may start to break and get deeper. It is very common for a person to experience the voice going very deep one minute and very high the next.

Signs of puberty include:

• Everyone develops at different stages. Nobody needs to worry if a child reaches puberty before or after friends
• Growth spurts
• Pubic hair and underarm hair, and leg hair will become thicker and darker
• Facial hair in in persons with male genitalia
• Acne
• Hips become wider and their breasts become bigger in typical female
• Typical males get broader shoulders
• The body starts to sweat more
• Thoughts about sex become normal
• Typical males may sometimes have wet dreams and ejaculate in their sleep
• The penis and testicles will grow
• Typical males' voices will become deeper
• Mood changes and unexplained mood swings

If your child is transgender then puberty might be a particularly stressful time for them as this means the development of secondary sex characteristics that do not correspond to their gender identity. It is possible to delay the onset of puberty through the use of puberty blockers until the adolescent is better able to decide on their gender identity. Support can be sought from the Gender Wellbeing Clinic.