Adolescent Sexual Health | Reflection

Running head: ADOLESCENT SEXUAL HEALTH 1
Adolescent Sexual Health
Name
Institution

ADOLESCENT SEXUAL HEALTH 2
Adolescent Sexual Health
Reflection
Just like many other people, my adolescent was not very bright. I grew up in a family of
extremists and perfectionists that was made up of doctors and lawyers. When I reflect on my
adolescence, I realize how I was under immense pressure to succeed and to be someone my other
siblings could look up to especially given that I was the firstborn. I remember how my parents
were very religious people and they enforced cultural values on our daily lives. I and my other
siblings had to find a balance between academics, extracurricular activities, and religion because
of the discipline with which our parents brought us up. I also remember vividly how they could
reward us for every success that we accomplished. The rewards came in the form of social trips
and being given almost anything we could ever need to ensure that we never came short in life.
During my teenage years, most of my peers were focused on relationships, hooking up, making
friends, and hanging out. Ladies rocked shiny pants, cuffed up jeans, and some tops that were
folded off the shoulder. Boys, on the other hand, dressed in ripped jeans the ones we nowadays
call unfinished. They also bleached their hair and some put on the magnetic earrings. Social
media at this time had a huge influence on popularity and what was claimed to be accepted.
Having an iPhone was almost a necessity and anyone who did not have it was alienated from
other people. People were crazy about Facebook, Skype, MSN, and all those trendy social media
sites. Above all these, however, we still had to attend classes and be enrolled in extracurricular
programs to keep us engaged in what our parents thought was the most important.
As a child, I was still trained to perform house chores and help my parents at home. Being the
firstborn, I was tasked with helping my younger siblings with their homework, dressing, and

ADOLESCENT SEXUAL HEALTH 3
cleaning. More responsibility was put upon my shoulder to do what was right. My family
expected me to be like a role model to my younger siblings. We were not highly motivated to
take part in community service. However, having been put through the IBO program we were
expected to engage in volunteering services such as helping the sick in hospitals and cleaning the
hospitals and their surroundings. We also volunteered to help the elderly in care homes, orphans,
refugees, and all the other people who were in need in our community.
My parents highly valued education and they always insisted that we get the highest grades in
everything we engaged in from academics, religious activities, to extracurricular activities. I
cannot remember anything extraordinarily special in my adolescent except for trying to get the
highest grades in school that could see me bagging an academic trophy at the annual prize-giving
day. It reached a point that I did not focus on socializing with my peers because my life revolved
around the world of academic excellence. I never took part in the social events in school
although I believed they used to be a lot of fun. I sacrificed all that because I was convinced that
I could not have such fun and excel in class at the same time. My weekends were rarely used to
hang out with friends. The library was my best friend at the time and finishing assignments
ahead of time made me happy. I know this sounds weird but that is just how my childhood was;
books and nothing more.
I, however, have to admit that there were times that I wanted to enjoy free time and have fun on
weekends just being lazy as a kid. Unfortunately, that was not my life. I was wired differently
from other kids from a young age. My ambitions even pushed me to enroll myself in the IBO
program academy. I enjoyed seeking knowledge and it gave me so much pleasure even though
some people thought that my life was boring. The hunger for knowledge always pushed me to
study until late in the night and I was very determined to make my family and community proud.