10 yr. old dd refuses to say the word "penis"??

[salt_phoenix]

MY dd... HOW is it that she is too "embarrassed" to use the word "penis" when talking about the anatomy of a TURTLE???

I have never refrained from this word. There is no reason I can think of that she would or should be embarrassed by the word. I even told her that she can't make herself clear if she doesn't use words to describe things. I can only GUESS that penis is the word she wanted to use, because she was telling me that she thought our pet turtle is a female because it doesn't use it's (she wouldn't say the word here) to go pee.
We never even got to the conversation about turtle sex differences and lack of obvious genitalia in them because I was SO TAKEN ABACK BY HER REFUSAL TO SAY THE WORD PENIS!!!

I asked her why she was so embarrassed by "just a word used to describe a body part" but she absolutely refused to even discuss THAT.
What gives?

[fek&fuzz]

She's 10. Some people start to become more embarrassed around their parents when saying those words, or talking about bodily functions or bras or whatever.

I wouldn't make a big deal of it, or try to make her say the word. Just let it go and let her be.

[terrordactyl]

: when i was younger i wouldnt use that word either. pre-teens are embarrassed easily

[Oriole]

I will only guess that the bigger deal this is made out to be, the longer it will take her to become comfortable with that word.

If you model something, and believe that it is natural, she will pick it up. At the same time, forcing her to say something she is not ready for will only do more harm than good, imho. Your daughter is obviously uncomfortable with a word that describes private part of the body she doesn't really get to see in real life.

I would be mortified if my mom insisted on discussion on this topic when I was ten. *shrug* Now grown up, I lead active sexual life with a loving partner, and not afraid to use the word "penis" when it comes to turtles...

It will all work out, don't worry about it, and allow your daughter to have some space on the topics she doesn't want to discuss with you at the moment.

Good Luck!

[SusanElizabeth]

I don't think it's strange for a 10 year old to feel uncomfortable about the word penis. I think the sound of the word, in of itself, is intense. And then of course there's everything connected with it...

[ananas]

There's absolutely NO way I could have said the word penis in front of my mom (or anyone else for that matter) at the age of ten. I'd just let it go.

[kamilla626]

Originally Posted by ananas

There's absolutely NO way I could have said the word penis in front of my mom (or anyone else for that matter) at the age of ten. I'd just let it go.

Yep.

[PikkuMyy]

That type of embarassment (talking about private parts around parents) is very common at that age. It's not a big deal.

[lunabelly]

I wouldn't make a big deal out of it, either. My dd just said it for the first time the other day (referring to ds), and then she said, "I can finally say penis without being embarrassed." I didn't even know it had been an issue.

Just continue to use the language normally, and she'll catch on.

[Phantaja]

I wouldn't even say "bathroom" around that age. I'd just say that I had to "go" or use "it." And boys had "things" certainly not penises. I think that it's an age thing.

[Ruthla]

I think it's age appropriate, especially for a girl without any younger brothers.

[Smokering]

There's absolutely NO way I could have said the word penis in front of my mom (or anyone else for that matter) at the age of ten. I'd just let it go.

Ditto.

[MillingNome]

For as long as she knows the proper word, I wouldn't worry