how much of what teens say on fb and in texts is bravado

[generalhaig]

and how much is actually fact?

I'm feeling quite concerned about one of ds's friends who told him in a text (quite matter-of-factly) that she'd lost her virginity last week when she was drunk (she's 13)

ds was quite shocked, but when I've done my periodic sweep of facebook (he knows I go on occasionally, was one of the conditions of him getting an account) several of his friends are talking very casually about drinking and engaging in lots of talk about sex - it's mostly the girls, weirdly

I know some of their parents and am sure they wouldn't condone underage sex or drinking, so I'm wondering (hoping) if it's all - or mostly - bravado??

I would be concerned about the level of security your DS and his FB friends are setting. Unless you are logging on as him to look at his friends walls, they must be open to "friends of friends" at the least.

Although I have a DD same age, I still find it difficult to tell how much of the discussions is all talk. I would suspect some of it is attention seeking, but there will always be one or two 13yos experimenting early. DD has definitely mentioned yr10 girls getting pregnant,which would be 14/5yos.

I check out many of DDs FB friends (not via her a/c) but don't see much ib the way of discussion. Do see some marking themsellves as "in a relationship" or "engaged" though lol.

By way of a little info, young people often put that they are in relationships with other people as a way of expressing friendship, so my 13yo dd says she is married to her BFF and has about 15 sisters. And it changes all the time :-)
As they say LOL

my daughter is still a virgin and has a BF for 4 months now and shes proud of it and thinks its weird one of her classmates is boasting about this subject i have told her though that its quite possibly just talk and not true at all but on other hand might be id say 90% is kids thinksing its grown up n clever like in my day kids showing off they smoked my daughters the same so are all her friends putting others are Best friend brother or sister ect and it does change often the ones who talk openly on the subject of sex are as in adults the ones probably never have done it at all , whatever as long as youve approached the subject at home and school of safe sex and STDs im sure you have nothing to worry about