If you’ve seen your ten-year-old humping things, you were probably horrified at the moment, but hopefully, upon reflection, you realized that this is perfectly normal behavior. Children as young as two years old engage in this type of behavior, and many people even do it as adults. Let me reiterate: It is perfectly normal for a 10-year-old to hump. There is nothing wrong with your child.
If you have concerns, speak with your child’s pediatrician, and they’ll assure you that not only do they expect these behaviors, they would be concerned if some self-exploration weren’t happening.
But Why Do They Do It?
The short answer is because it feels good. The tension a person feels when they rub their private parts against things causes a sensation that is not felt by anything else. This is because even without an actual orgasm, our bodies release endorphin hormones that create a satisfying rush and block pain.
As children and preteens, we’ve yet to discover the actual act of masturbation, but it’s not far-fetched to rub ourselves against something and go, “whoa, what was that!” The friction feels good, even if we can’t explain or understand why at that age, resulting in an activity we recreate over and over again.
Humping is merely the precursor to more “acceptable” and mainstream methods of masturbation, and this activity is good for both mental and physical health. This is deliberate because this is such a typical behavior that many of us have done it. It is a behavior that makes us feel good.
Think of it as a self-soothing behavior. Just like children enjoy sucking on their thumbs or fiddling with their fingers, this can be something your 10-year-old does.
Private Pleasure Is Not For Public
While many experts agree that it is normal for a 10-year-old to hump and is a healthy activity in prepubescent children as they explore their bodies, the problem happens when they can’t draw the line between private pleasure and public acts.
This is the point at which you want to sit them down and discuss the term “private.” If your child is over the age of three and touching themselves in public or humping items when you have company over, you must explain that this act should not happen in front of others. It will cause discomfort to the people around you which is the last thing you want when you are out in public.
Please don’t shame your child. Simply explain that you don’t want them exposing themselves to people.
Again, if you have any worries or concerns or simply don’t know how to talk with your child about humping, consult with your child’s pediatrician. They’re professionals, and they’ll have the terminology and information you need to be well informed.
It’s Time To Talk With Your Kid
Many children are confused by their desire to hump things, and it’s okay to talk to them and explain that self-exploration is normal. Yes, they’ll be embarrassed that you caught them in the act, but if we want our kids to have a healthy understanding of what they felt when they were humping, the conversations start now.
If we don’t open dialogue with them, this humping behavior can quickly turn into something that might be harmful. Boys may try to self-satisfy themselves by using substances to masturbate that can harm the delicate skin along his penile shaft. Items like vapor rub, toothpaste, or a vacuum cleaner can be commonly used.
Girls might use objects that can tear their vaginal canal and be unsanitary when they move into more active masturbation methods such as using a hairbrush or toothbrush
Since the humping stage is a precursor, this is an excellent time for you to jump in before harmful behaviors happen.
Like the “safe sex” talk, you need to have the “safe masturbation” talk.
Preteens and teenagers will do just about anything to feel good sometimes, including inserting foreign objects into available holes or inserting a penis into inanimate objects. One quick search on the internet and you can read personal stories about how people caused damage to their private parts just by trying to experiment.
At the age of 10, they will have access to the online world and will be able to search things up on their own. This can cause a problem because many times, the influence that is all over the media has to do with sex and this can give them thoughts of wanting to explore more of that world.
Since humping has to do with sex, they might want to see others do it which can lead to them looking up inappropriate videos online.
The last thing you want as a parent is for your innocent 10-year-old to be viewing things like that. This is why we recommend you take action to prevent any of this from happening by adding a protective program that blocks out inappropriate videos from the web.
The curiosity of watching or seeing images and videos of people humping or engaging in acts of that nature will make any child capable of looking it up online.
Try Redirecting
Going back to the question “Is it normal for a 10-year-old to hump”, you need to remember that this is an action taken by the child because of what he is thinking. Our everyday actions are dictated by what our mind is telling us to do so if that is the case, making sure that the 10-year-old does not think about humping is important.
One way you can try to stop this habit if it is going out of hand is to redirect the attention of the 10-year-old.
Try starting a conversation about their favorite hobby or game they like to play. This will take their mind away from wanting to hump and engage them in a topic that they can talk about without any hesitation.
If they have an electronic device that they love to play on, hand it to them and redirect their attention into playing the game.
Stay Away From Sexul Content
Another way to prevent them from thinking about humping would be to stay away from sexual content.
With the way movies, commercials, and ads are being released these days, you probably have figured out that sex sells. It is a weakness of many people, even adults. This is why it can be very easy for your 10-year-old child to start formulating ideas and engage in sexual motions like humping.
Avoid watching movies and shows with sexual content because this will just fill their minds with ideas and their humping can become more frequent. As mentioned above, they will be able to access anything on the web at that age with the power of technology. Be wary of that and make sure you monitor what they are watching.
Final Thoughts – Is It Normal For A 10 Year Old To Hump
It can be completely normal for a 10-year-old to hump because of how we are made. We are a species that have sex hormones instilled in us and it is natural for us to want to mate or experience the same feeling. Just like all the animals in the world that do it, the idea of humping and doing that motion feels good to us.
It does not necessarily mean that it should be done constantly and in public.
If your 10-year-old is overdoing it, it would be recommended to talk to their doctor for more help. They should be at the age where they can understand that this should not be done often or in front of people.
It is also important to dial down and make sure that they are not searching these terms online because like it was mentioned above, curiosity will kick in and they will want to search the web for it.
All in all, if your 10-year-old is humping, don’t stress about it. It is normal for this action to happen but if it goes overboard, you will need to take further action.