OK, here's the background. Last summer my son (13, but 12 then) had a sleepover at his friend's. several months later, he was very upset and after a lot of cajoling he told me that this friend had touched him on his willy and I think he may also have touched his friend.
He was really upset because for all that time he'd been worried that he's gay.
He's def. not at all gay, not that I would mind if he was. The problem is that ever since that incident, he keeps telling me he thinks he's weird, and that he keeps wondering about sex.
I've been trying to reassure him, telling him that everyone's curious about sex at that age, he didn't do anything wrong, and I'm just a bit sad that his first even vaguely sexual experience was so upsetting to him.
No matter what I say, though, he just can't seem to get it out of his head, and now every night at tucking up time he says he's worried that he's "weird" (he doesn't say gay, I don't think he seriously thinks he is gay).
Has anyone else had this sort of situation? My reassurance just doesn't seem to be helping. I'd be reluctant to get a referral to counselling as I think that would just reinforce his image of himself as being abnormal.