Growing up is always challenging, but when
you’re a boy, it comes with some special weird and embarrassing moments. Here are some weird struggles that only boys
will understand. It’s almost enough to make you envy the
girls every time you walk in the boy’s room. They have clear, private cubicles that they
can go into and lock the door when they need to pee. For boys and men, though, it’s time for
combat at the urinal. Not only do you have to find a space, but
this often feels like a game of tetris. There’s nothing more awkward than standing
right next to some guy you don’t know at the urinal, so you’d better move fast in
order to find a spot where no one’s standing next to you - and hope no one else comes in. And it’s not the only time school wants
you to get up-close and personal. Gym class is bad enough, especially when you’ve
got it early in the morning. But then comes the most dreaded part of gym
class - the locker room. According to the teachers, it’s supposed
to be a retreat for you to change in and out of gym clothes privately. In reality, it’s anything but. All it takes is one guy and the entire thing
descends into a chaotic battle of snapping towels and stolen pants. Maybe the best strategy is finding a quiet
corner and hoping no one notices you - and then slipping away when the teacher gets mad
at the chaos. But there’s one area of the locker room
that’s even more feared. If you’ve ever gone into a Turkish or Russian
bath, or even your neighborhood gym, you’ve probably noticed people aren’t very modest. Old men will just saunter into the shower
naked and talk about Sunday’s ballgame. But in school, it’s a very different story. Between changing bodies and bullies, it’s
always hard to figure out exactly how to act in the locker room shower. One thing’s for sure, you don’t want to
be caught staring. So just look at the ceiling and try to get
clean - or maybe just skip the shower altogether if being a little sweaty for math class is
the better choice. It’s not the only area of school where things
get a little...macho. You’ve probably been dealing with bullies
for a while, starting when Tommy Jones decided to shove you down on the playground in first
grade. But as boys get older, the conflicts can get
a little more...intense. Some words are exchanged, and then next thing
you know, someone is saying those dreaded words - Fight after school! Now you’ve got to spend all day worrying
about getting your butt kicked, and you can’t exactly back out because a hundred people
saw it. And worse, even if you win the fight, you’ll
probably get suspended - whether you started it or not. Really, it doesn’t take much to get in trouble
at school. You’re just sitting there at lunch, trying
to eat your cafeteria sloppy joe without spilling it on your shirt, and suddenly a carton of
milk smacks you upside the head. It’s a food fight! Soon the cafeteria’s in chaos, the principal
storms in - and you’re one of dozens of boys hauled to the office, even though you
never hurled a single meatball! The fact is, many teachers and administrators
just assume all boys are rowdy troublemakers, and they’ll just blame the whole group rather
than trying to sort out who’s actually guilty. Maybe they shouldn invest in cameras. Of course, there’s one area at school that
guys struggle with more than any other - girls! It feels like as soon as many boys hit middle
school, a switch is flipped! Suddenly, you notice that the girl who showed
you her favorite snails at recess last year is actually, really pretty. And then you can’t think about anything
else. You’re staring at her in class, all the
world disappears, and the next thing you know, the teacher is loudly calling your name and
asking you a question you didn’t hear. Embarrassing, and you vow to pay more attention
- and it works until the next time the girl of your dreams enters your line of sight. And then there’s the period where the whole
first-date thing gets super-intense. Middle school is where you get your first
taste of a classic teenage tradition - the school dance. Sure, it’s not as high-stakes as prom - you’re
probably just dancing in the gym and you don’t have to rent a tux - but you’ve still got
to answer that one big question. To ask someone out or not to ask someone out? Sure you can go solo to a middle school dance,
and you probably won’t be alone, but it’s the perfect opportunity to ask out that crush. But if she turns you down or has already been
asked out, it’s every boy’s worst nightmare. And even if she says yes, one more big hurdle
awaits. There’s no moment more nerve-wracking for
a boy about to go on his first date - meeting the parents. Sure, the mom will probably be pretty nice,
but she’s just playing the good cop. It’s time to meet the bad cop - dear old
dad. At best, he’ll probably ask you some probing
questions about your intentions, which are probably to look silly dancing and maybe drink
a lot of punch. If he’s cleaning out his shotgun when you
come in, the odds are he’s been watching too many old moves. But hey, it could be worse - she could have
four older brothers. And then there’s this timeless dilemma. Things have changed since your dad was dating
for the first time, but one question remains - do you have to pay for both you and your
date when you go out? For your dad, the answer was almost definitely
yes, but it’s a little trickier for you - and that makes it more stressful. If you asked her out, the odds are you’ll
be paying if you want to look good. But if she asked you out, it’s much trickier
and the check may start to feel like a game of chicken. But if you’re hoping for a second date,
it may be tempting to just reach for the check and look good. If you’re going to see a movie instead,
there are still some potential pitfalls. You probably shouldn’t have seen the movie
about the reincarnating dog. All you can think about is your old dog Sparky. Your date is bawling her eyes out - and you
also want to! But before you tear up, you remember that
old refrain - boys don’t cry. It’s not accurate, but boys are under a
lot of pressure to act manly and emotionless at all times. You don’t want to look like a mess in front
of your date, but that dog is really getting to you. At least you’re in a darkened theater and
can bury your head in the popcorn bucket. Your interests aren’t the only thing that
starts changing around this time - your body is too. It’s probably the worst fear of every boy. Your teacher is talking, and suddenly she’s
calling you up to the board to solve a problem. There’s just one problem - you’ve got
a pointy reminder of puberty making itself known in your pants right about now. She’s not taking no for an answer, and you
can’t exactly explain it with the entire class watching. So now it’s a long awkward walk up to the
front of the classroom, pulling your shirt down and hoping no one looks too closely. If all goes well, you won’t be the laughing
stock of the class - today. And that’s not the only weird change you’ll
encounter. What’s one of the most unpredictable parts
of puberty for boys? Body hair! Sure, you might actually be looking forward
to getting your first hairs on your chin or lip, because it makes you look surprisingly
grown-up. Maybe you can get into an R-rated movie now. But it doesn’t stay there - hair starts
showing up everywhere! You notice it on your chest, under your arms,
and even...there. It makes showering and getting clean trickier,
and you’re kind of wondering if you got bitten by a werewolf and didn’t know it. Nope, it’s just those friendly hormones. And then there’s one change that becomes
obvious to everyone. Maybe you had a high-pitched voice as a little
boy. It’s common, and it also helped out a lot
in the school choir. And then suddenly, like a switch was flipped
- it starts cracking. At first you have a weird, squeaky voice that
goes up and down, and by the time it’s done, your voice is deeper and sounds completely
different from your old one. And those songs you used to sing kind of sound
like a slowed-down cover, and you’re being chased out of the choir room. Hormones pretty commonly wreak havoc on the
voices of boys as they hit puberty, and unfortunately for that record contract, there’s really
no going back. And if you have some questions, that’s when
things get even more awkward. Your body is changing, son, and it’s time
we had a talk. It’s the words that strike fear in every
boy, because you know you and dad are about to have the most awkward conversation of both
your lives. The odds are he’ll fumble over some explanations
that leave you with more questions than you started with, and he’s probably relying
on the same book his dad used to explain it to him. Maybe you would have been better off waiting
for the sex ed class in school, but go easy on the guy - he’s probably repeating the
lame speech his dad gave to him. Of course, maybe you decided to try to figure
some of this out for yourself. It’s one of the time-honored rituals of
being a teenage boy - searching the internet for some things you probably shouldn’t be
looking for. There’s just a few things to be careful
of. Make sure you’re not visiting any website
that has viruses lurking - and that’s probably all of them for this subject. Make sure to be ready to close the window
quickly should mom or dad come into the room. If you’re a little older, you probably have
memories of getting your information from a much more low-tech option - dad’s old
adult mags that he keeps under the bed. But there are a few other things that every
boy can eventually relate to - and some of them are pretty painful. That body hair is growing fast, and you’re
even starting to get that five-o-clock shadow. But that’s kind of awkward when you’re
still a freshman. Time to break out that shaving gear for the
first time. Exciting! There’s just one problem - how do you get
through your first shave without cutting off half your face? Hopefully you’ve got a good teacher and
have a steady hand, but the odds are you’re going to get some nicks. And they probably won’t be half as painful
as when the aftershave hits your skin. Of course, there’s one pain that comes above
any other. You’ve probably taken a hit or two in the
balls over the years, and just thinking about it makes you tear up. But that’s nothing compared to one nightmare
of every boy - the premature zip. You’re done peeing, you’re in a hurry,
and your penis decides to make an unfortunate reappearance just as you’re zipping. This is agonizingly painful in the best of
times, an embarrassing hospital visit at worst. Hopefully this is just a permanent fear after
seeing it happen to Ben Stiller in the movies and not an actual reality. But some injuries are avoidable - not that
it helps. The odds are, most boys will have some interesting
injury stories. Maybe you tried to joust with a hornet’s
nest, or decided to test the speed of a sled down Doomsday Hill. And the odds are, it all began with one of
your friends saying “I dare you”. So why do boys keep on making...less than
ideal decisions? Peer pressure and adrenaline. Your mom probably warned you a few dozen times,
but somehow in the heat of the moment the excitement always feels worth the scars. At least it’ll make a cool story at school
the next day. For more on the changes boys go through, watch
“These Are the Signs You Are Going Through Puberty” or try “Why Is Blue a Boy’s
Color” for another look at how boys are socialized.
