The sexuality of children
The great stages of children's sexuality
1) The sexuality of infants
Babies are interested in pleasure from birth. Satisfying one's basic needs gives the newborn a pleasure that can be equated with eroticism. The baby feels pleasure during feeding (pleasure given by sucking and the feeling of satiety) and tries to reproduce this pleasure outside of meals, by sucking on his pacifier or his thumb. This phase of sexuality is defined oral stage. At this stage, however, the newborn also has other sources of pleasure: bathing, the caresses of the mother and family, being cradled and held in the arms ... these pleasant sensations are amplified by the pleasure of communicating with others.
See also
Sex education: how to give children an "affective education about sexuality."
2) The sexuality of children less than two years old
Gradually the child discovers other parts of his own body, which become as many sources of pleasure. At about 15 months it begins anal stage: learning to keep clean, the child discovers that he can control his body and ... his mother. With this in mind, the child can make his mother happy by leaving him a "souvenir" in the potty or he can oppose her by not "giving" anything.
3) Sexuality between 2 and 6 years
The child's development continues: from the anal stage he moves on to discovering his own genital organs and those of his brothers and sisters, friends and parents ... Everything about the genital organs intrigues him (it's time to "play doctor") and the child discovers masturbation, one speaks therefore of phallic stage.
It is always in this phase that, between the ages of 3 and 4, the Oedipus complex develops: the child unconsciously rejects the parent of the opposite sex to try to seduce the mother or father, attracting the attention of the parent in question and seeking to slip into the Latvian. Faced with the impossibility of satisfying his love desire, the child gradually removes this feeling and accepts the situation (mum or dad are already married). This renunciation will allow him to experience true feelings of love later on.
4) Sexuality between 6 and 9 years
The child is in a "latent" period, from which he will only emerge at puberty. At this stage the child loses any interest in sexuality and focuses entirely on friends, school, games.
5) Sexuality between the ages of 9 and 12
The child is in the moment before puberty: interest in sexuality gradually reappears, often in a veiled way and in the form of "scientific" questions. Children identify with models (singers, sportsmen, actors…).
This period allows the child to affirm his sexual identity and, once the time has come, to orient himself towards the other sex.
