(AKA What the Heck is the Hot Girl Summer Challenge and why is it influencing my teen to want to “hookup”?)
If you are like me, you may have little-to-no knowledge about the Hot Girl Summer Challenge that is blowing up on tween and teen social media accounts, most notably, Tik Tok. When I first heard about it from one of my clients, I felt totally out of the loop. With very little research, I was able to find out that it is based on a song from last summer by Megan Thee Stallion called “Hot Girl Summer.” She says on Twitter, “Being a Hot Girl is about being unapologetically YOU, having fun, being confident, living YOUR truth, being the life of the party, etc.” What I’ve learned from talking to teens and tweens is that this message has translated very differently to different kids. For some, it truly is about inspiration and positivity while for others, it is in inspiration to “hookup”. I’ve seen lists that include…
Hot Girl Summer Challenge – Version 1
- Taking a bath (5 points)
- Working out (10 points)
- Staying up all night with your best friend (15 points)
- Doing something nice for a friend (15 points)
Unfortunately the song and its message has also been the inspiration for lists that look like this:
Hot Girl Summer Challenge – Version 2
- Sexting (5 points)
- Hookup with 2 guys (10 points)
- Ghost someone (10 points)
- Hot tub makeout (10 points)
As a parent myself, when I hear about trends like this, I panic a little inside. Further, I feel the strong pull to get my kids in front of me and tell them about every possible danger they might face and how to protect themselves. However, what I have learned as a therapist and Positive Discipline Trainer is that trends like this one are actually OPPORTUNITIES for us to connect with our kids.
START HERE: Be Genuinely Curious About Their World
Start with approaching your kiddo with an attitude of curiosity. If you are really anxious or worried when you bring this up, they will feel it and shut down or become upset. Ground yourself first by taking deep breaths or trying one of the practices in this blog by my dear colleague Julie Burke, LPC.
Conversational Curiosity Questions:
- Can you teach me about ___?
- What is Hot Girl Summer? Can you tell me about it?
- Are your friends doing it?
- What were you trying to accomplish?
- What’s the goal of Hot Girl Summer?
- How do you get points?
- What do you think of HGS?
- How do you feel about what happened?
- How did you feel about your score being posted by your BFF?
- Are you okay?
- What did you learn from this experience?
- What did you learn from what happened?/What are you learning from the HGS Challenge?
- What ideas do you have to take care of the problem now?
- What ideas do you have to move forward with Tik Tok use in a safe way?
- What agreements do you want to make about your phone and social media use?
- How do you plan to address this issue with your BFF?
- Is there any other information you can give me to help me understand?
For counseling for your tween/teen and or for parent support, please reach out to AFC to talk to a therapist today! [email protected]
For more information about parenting tweens and teens, please check out the following::
- Positive Discipline for Teenagers by Jane Nelsen, Ed.D.
- Risky Behavior and Teens – July 29-31, 2020 Online Mini Summit – https://www.joyfulcourage.com/rbms
