Teenage Love

[Livewire]

Saying teenager can't fall in love is the stupidest thing I have ever heard. Who is anyone to judge the emotional status of someone else?

My only question would be, at that age, are the teenagers confusing love with physical attraction? I doubt many teens ask themselves "Do I really want to be with his person for the rest of my adult life" Or, "I want to settle down and have children with this person" or "How well will we be financially" when they look for a girlfriend/boyfriend in high school.

 

[Alice]

I've had a love-at-first-sight moment... but other than that, I've really never had any interest. Probably because I never thought a relationship in this stage of life could have any real meaning, and I don't want a girlfriend, just for the sake of having one, like some people do.

 

[twocows]

My only question would be, at that age, are the teenagers confusing love with physical attraction? I doubt many teens ask themselves "Do I really want to be with his person for the rest of my adult life" Or, "I want to settle down and have children with this person" or "How well will we be financially" when they look for a girlfriend/boyfriend in high school.

There are plenty of adults who confuse the issue, and there are plenty of other adults that would argue there is no difference. Love is a poorly defined word, its definition varies as much as people themselves do.

 

[Azonic]

My only question would be, at that age, are the teenagers confusing love with physical attraction? I doubt many teens ask themselves "Do I really want to be with his person for the rest of my adult life" Or, "I want to settle down and have children with this person" or "How well will we be financially" when they look for a girlfriend/boyfriend in high school.

Being in love does not necessarily mean that you want to be with them for the rest of your life, considering financial aspects, or having children with them whur my gayboys at. It's just a state of deep affection towards someone, hard to define and impossible to measure.

 

[Dakotah]

A very interesting subject.

Growing up, I never thought I would truly be able to have a relationship with anyone, at any age. In my teens, I felt many attractions for my classmates, but never did I act on those attractions. Instead, I hid my attractions and instead sought out companionship from people for who I held no attraction. I did it because it was what was expected of me.

You see, I grew up in a time where it was not acceptable to be openly gay. Being a teen, and being flooded with all these hormones that drives one to seek out a person to share a close relationship, certainly didn't make things any easier.

I did have a crush on someone when I was 14. He was the only one who really paid me any attention, owing to the fact that I tended to keep to myself most of the time. Every time I was with him, though, it was as though a heavy burden had been lifted from my shoulders. Here was someone, I thought, who I could truly be myself with. That was, until the terrifying day when he was killed on his way to school one day. Right in front of me. Even now, two decades later, I still remember the times we shared together. I can remember the many days we talked as we walked down the halls in school to our next class, or competed against each other in chess club, or collaborated on a project for the school newsletter. This was no mere crush. I realized that I truly did love him. I have to admit, I still do. I probably always will.

Someone on here said that it is unlikely for a person that young to fall in love. But I know from my own experience that this isn't so. We human beings are sexual creatures. A part of our sexuality involves our feelings for other people. We are just as capable at 14 of falling in love as we are when we're adults.

I knew I was in love back then. It wasn't sex that made our relationship what it was (which we never had anyway), it was the tender moments we shared and the feelings of contentment we both felt when we were together. It was no simple infatuation. It was love. As powerful then as it is today, even though he's gone.

 

[Oryx]

My only question would be, at that age, are the teenagers confusing love with physical attraction? I doubt many teens ask themselves "Do I really want to be with his person for the rest of my adult life" Or, "I want to settle down and have children with this person" or "How well will we be financially" when they look for a girlfriend/boyfriend in high school.

Do you base whether or not you're in love on how well you'll be financially with that person? Would you not fall in love with someone because they're poor? o_o

 

[Everyone Esplode Noaw]

My only question would be, at that age, are the teenagers confusing love with physical attraction? I doubt many teens ask themselves "Do I really want to be with his person for the rest of my adult life" Or, "I want to settle down and have children with this person" or "How well will we be financially" when they look for a girlfriend/boyfriend in high school.

Well, to tell the truth, there aren't many things I haven't thought about with the person I'm talking about. Her personality is everything to me and really, I have no actual physical attraction to her, so I don't know rather to brush my feelings off as just another crush, or the real thing.

I know for a fact I couldn't find one reason I couldn't spend the rest of my life with her. I don't think too much about children... I don't know if I want any right now. And really, if we make our dreams reality, I can't see why we wouldn't make an excellent living.

 

[Dahlia411]

I think you can find love and be in love at any age. I believe you can also find your soulmate in high school sometimes too. Anything is possible with love.

Edit: A few weeks after this post, I got over the guy I was talking about (I deleted what I said and is now replacing it with this), because I met another guy through band. The guy I met through band is wonderful. We both play xylophone!! He changed my life. We are now boyfriend and girlfriend, the only problem is, is that we live far away from each other. But still, despite the distance, he makes me the happiest person alive :)

 

[Captain Fabio]

Do you, like, not remember being 14 at all? Or did you just develop really late? I remember as far back as junior high (12) people were dating and going out. Even I was into girls by that age.

Late reply is late.

Lol! Yes, I do remember when I was 14, but I never proclaimed my love for someone. Relationships at that age weren't a big thing for me. Sure, I did date girls, but I really couldn't be bothered with it.
It is actually how I am now! XD
It is all very well and good, but Christ, IMO, it is more effort than it is worth at times.​

​

 

[Synaesthesia]

Umm.. love is a tricky topic. I think you can be in love at any age, it just also depends on what you have to compare it to. You might be in love the first time you have true feelings for someone, but you might not realize it because it's your first time.

Uhh, personally, I declared myself to be in love with a girl when I was 16. Now.. I don't really know. It was a terribly rough time in my life. I'm nearly 19 now and it still creeps up every so often to bother me, even though I've cut all contact with the girl in question.

Some people define love as a mutual feeling. You're never truly in love unless you're loved back. That may be true, and hell I'd prefer if it were, but I'm just not sure on that one... I think you can be in love with someone who doesn't love you back, and if you manage to fall into that hole, it sucks. To put it lightly.

It'll be an interesting time in your life, to say the least. But I think it's something that should be done and should be experienced. It'll prepare you much better for when you need to work through a real relationship that will get somewhere. Because seriously, if there's one thing I can warn you about is that, whatever relationship or love-ordeal you get into during your teenhood, do not think it'll last forever. Do not think they're the one you'll marry. Not only are the chances of it happening very slim, but if it does happen, I personally don't think you'll have a happy marriage.

 

[AntiZero]

I think one can love, no matter what their age, if they have the mental maturity. A lot of young teenagers are more complex than many people might think.
Love by definition is "a pleasurable feeling of excitement and mystery associated with affectionate emotions and strong personal attachment." There's no set boundary that limits the age one can feel love.
Then again, this is "love" I'm talking about, not "true love."

 

[Umbreon Bob]

I feel silly reading some posts in this thread. Seriously.

 

[Virgilia]

I'm in love in a way the majority don't necessarily think of/realize: I love my friends and my family, they're all precious to me and I would hate it if I lost any family member or friend. I have yet to go out with someone, and I doubt it'll be anytime soon. In the mean time, I'll enjoy life, and worry about love when something actually pops up.

 

[blue]

I truely believe love is genuine once you're a mature age, there's alot more dedication and you know where it's going.

 

[trespasser]

I believe that anybody can love. I mean, you have to love somebody, ya know? Whether it be your parents, relatives, friends, or even pets... I just don't understand how there is an 'age limit' for love, and if there is... how did it come to exist? Did some person just come up and say 'You can't love, your to young!' I think love for other people can be in any ages. True love, to me, is about the same thing as love for friends: except a lot more affection for them.

I understand that some of you are thinking, 'Well, they can't really tell when it's true love, or just a crush.' That is true, but there still is a chance that they are in 'true' love, too. (But I think the chances of it being a crush is 85%...)

 

[pastelspectre]

Honestly, I don't really see a problem with teen love. Most teens love celebrities these days, being all obsessed with them, which i find is a phase, but... onto my point.
I don't think it's anyone's job to say whether or not a person is in love with another. It's the person who's in love with that boy or girl to determine that. It might just be raging hormones, or it might be true love. You only know until you get to know that person well.
I'm currently in a relationship with my boyfriend. Been going out for at least 4 months now. It's working out fine, and I don't see us breaking up anytime soon.

The age of the relationship doesn't matter. How mature you act and think matters before you begin a relationship.

 

[Awesome.]

I think that "True" Teenage Love exists. Sure there are relationships but those can vary from a couple of weeks to months. I think Teenage relationships are what prepare teenagers for serious commitments later on in life.

 

[Romantica]

What I've come to notice is the person who believes "teen love" does not exist usually has never come close to experiencing it for themselves. Now, I'm not speaking of the typical boy meets girl, obsessed with each other, break up a month or so (or less) later. To even call that any form of love is an insult in itself. I'm concerning the kids who legitimately fall for someone and build a powerful enough friendship with another and grow together. I met my current boyfriend when I was 15. To say that I went four years of our relationship without loving him because I was a teenager would be a lie.

Of course, the definition/meaning of love varies from person to person. The key term when it comes to love, in my opinion, is maturity, and I believe there are teens that are very capable of having it.

 

[pastelspectre]

Indeed. Some teenagers are able to deal with the problems and calamities of teenage love. How you feel for that one specific person varies from person to person. People's point of view on teenage love vary from person to person, because not everyone thinks teenagers are old enough and ready to be in a relationship. It just depends on how mature you act and how you feel for that one person.