Being a girl can be weird, it’s like we always want what we don’t have. Curly-haired girls want straight hair. Smaller girls want to be bigger and bigger girls want to be smaller. Girls are even having tiny tattoos put on their faces so it seems like they have freckles.
One of the toughest things about being a teenage girl is wondering when all the ‘changes’ everyone talks about are going to happen. If they start early, most of us just wish they’d have held off, but if you’re a late bloomer, you want them to hurry up!
Girls who start getting boobs and all those other things a bit later are often called ‘late bloomers’. And for those of us who fall into that category, every day can just seem like we’re getting further and further behind. Our friends out buying bras, talking about period pain (which we know nothing about) and sharing acne tips, while we hang around in our empty ‘crop tops’ nodding along and pretending we understand.
To make matters worse, some of our friends who aren’t late bloomers, think it’s kind to try and ‘comfort’ us and in doing so, continuously point out how behind we are. “Don’t worry you’ll get boobs one day!” “It’s ok, you’ll hit puberty eventually!” “You’re the lucky one, you don’t have to deal with all this stuff!”
The thing is, the last one is the most true of all. We spend so much time judging ourselves and wishing we were something else, that we forget to celebrate what we have now. So… we thought we’d remind you of the great things about being a late bloomer and help you celebrate how awesome life can be right now!
- Boobs can be great, but they can also be a drag!
One thing we don’t want to do is make girls who do already have boobs feel bad about them — they are a normal part of our beautiful bodies. But not having boobs yet does come with some reasons to celebrate.
For a start, as your boobs start growing you can get some tenderness and discomfort. And once you start getting your period, you can get this same tenderness every single month.
The other challenge with boobs is knowing what to do with them, and this isn’t something that all of us really get straight away. All girls are different, and our boobs grow in different shapes and sizes. Some are really round, others are more pointy, some a very large, and some are much smaller.
Because there’s no ‘one-size fits-all’ when it comes to boobs, finding the right bra and figuring out how to wear it comfortably, so you look and feel good, but don’t look like Madonna in the 80s, can take some trial and error. On top of that, finding clothes that suit your new shape and make you feel confident can take some work.
Celebrate your flat chest and revel in the fact you have been dressing it for years, so you know exactly how to make yourself look GREAT! And remember, as a late bloomer, you have the advantage of watching everyone else get it wrong, so when you’re ready, you can learn from their mistakes and catch on quicker than everyone else!
- Enjoy the summer — carefree!
In reality, there are few girls who would say their period is an enjoyable experience and something they look forward to each month. For many of us, though it really is fine, annoying, but a bit of a non-event — it’d definitely be nicer not to have to deal with it at all.
The most challenging time to deal with periods is summer, especially summer holidays! When the weather is sunny and warm, and all you want to do is head to the beach or to the pool, of course that’s when your period decides to come and destroy all your plans! And sure, there are tampons, but for some of us, getting used to them (especially when they are full of pool water), and not worrying about strings hanging out of bikinis is all too much!
As a late bloomer, revel in your summer holidays knowing you don’t have the hassle of dealing with your period!
- With periods comes PMS!
Another great reason to celebrate being a late bloomer is you don’t have to deal with PMS — that’s premenstrual syndrome. PMS is different for everyone, and can range from a little ache in the base of your stomach, to sore boobs, headaches, mouth ulcers, cramps, nausea and diarrhoea.
On the bright side, PMS can be managed really well with a good combo of pain killers, heat packs, exercise and breathing, so it’s not something you need to worry about in the future, but not having to manage it at all for a while is something to celebrate.
- Hairy bikini lines
Ok, we have to do it. Let’s talk about hair.
Boobs and periods go hand-in-hand with suddenly sprouting some big, thick patches of hair in some really annoying places. While women’s rights groups are dead set on changing the way we see hair on females so we don’t have to worry about maintenance so much, for some of us, waxing, plucking and shaving is a choice because it makes us feel better.
Though pubes ‘downstairs’ and under your arms will usually start to appear earlier than periods and boobs, if you’re a late bloomer, chances are they’ll be a little later too! No pubes means no waxing, shaving and worrying about strays when you hit the pool or the beach in summer — just another reason to celebrate your fashionably late body!
- Seeing spots
Like pubic hair, pimples and acne can set in earlier than boobs and periods. But chances are even spots will stay away longer for you than they will for ‘earlier bloomers’ — and they may not even appear at all, as not all teenagers end up with acne.
Celebrate your clear face by looking after it! Wash and cleanse it each day and remove any makeup, don’t use any harsh chemicals on it or pick at it with dirty fingernails or hands, and make sure you wear sun cream.
We’re all different — let yourself love being a late bloomer!
We know, ‘we’re all different’ can sound like such a cop out. One of those things people say when they want to make us feel better about something , but it really is true. We all change at different rates, and when we do change, we all end up looking different and experiencing it differently. Enjoy your differences and make the most of them, they make you ‘you’.
