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Preteenagers Today's Health Advisory Panel Answers: How much make believe is normal for a 12-year-old girl? |
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Chris Crutcher Author Licensed Child and Family Therapist |
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Question: I've stumbled above some notes my 12-year-old girl has written at school. She is quite a story teller! She makes up these very, very romantic and dramatic love stories she has with boys. I know for a fact this stuff is just her imagination. I'm not sure how normal this is. She loves to write in a journal as well, and she makes up some wild stuff. How much make believe is normal? |
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Answer: As long as it's in a journal and you know it isn't being acted out, I'd leave it right there. A 12-year-old is going into puberty; some have already been there a while, and those fantasies are normal. It's a way of expression, and kids need privacy to do that. There is such a difference between expression and behavior, and being able to express something often lessons the impulse to act on it. |
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