Parents have so much to deal with these days. I remember being a teen and never giving my parents a reason to worry – in my own mind. I didn’t smoke, drink or party or engage in any other activities I shouldn’t be at that age. I was too busy in clubs, playing softball, on the cheer squad and even coaching my mom’s middle school cheer squad, and getting good grades. I was a good student, and a good teen. I skipped school a few times, I lied to my parents about where I was and who I was with a few times, but I wasn’t hanging out with adults, having sex or doing drugs, so I was a pretty good kid. And I had no idea just how much my parents worried anyway. I didn’t know until I became a parent. I didn’t know that they worried every time I came home from school in a bad mood, wondering if bullies were an issue and how they could fix things. I had no idea until I was a parent that kids know far more than parents think they know, and they are aware of far more than parents think they are aware of. I didn’t know how much my parents worried about their decisions, about their parenting and about everything related to my brother and I. I was annoyed when they’d try to use ‘cool’ slang or sing in the car.
Today, I’m a parent with four kids. My oldest will be 7 this year, and the first grade is a whole new world. Suddenly my daughter knows more than I think she should know at this age, yet I’m told other kids know far more in terms of “real world” things. It’s that time for me to learn as much as I can about the world she lives in, and that means keeping up with the latest internet slang terms. She’s nowhere near old enough to use the internet, but I want to prepare myself now. And all parents should know these 20 slang terms – and I warn you that they are going to make you a little bit sick to your stomach.
IWSN -I want sex now.
WYCM – Will you call me?
DOC – Drug of choice
LMK – Let me know.
PIR – Parent in room.
SUGARPIC – Send me a suggestive or naughty photo
GNOC – Get naked on camera.
CU46 – See you for sex
9 – Parent watching
1174’ – Party meeting place
Broken – Hungover from alcohol
LMIRL – Let’s meet in real life
420 – Marijuana
TDTM – Talk dirty to me.
TWD – Texting while driving
KPC – Keeping parents clueless
LH6 – Let’s have sex.
WTTP – Want to trade pictures?
CD9 – Code 9 parents around
IPN – I’m Posting Naked
If your kids have internet access or a phone or tablet of their own, you must absolutely know what these mean. You have to know what kids are saying to each other, even if you think most of the things kids say are pretty innocuous. LMAO, LOL, TTYL, C U L8R and other acronyms of that nature seem very innocent, but they’re not all innocent. When we were growing up, we didn’t have this issue because text messaging was either pretty new or (in my case) not quite invented at that point. We didn’t have to worry about anything but chat rooms.
Looking at this list, it’s almost impossible to tell which slang term should worry us most as parents. There are so many that make me absolutely sick to my stomach, but I’m inclined to feel that the “LMIRL” is the worst. What this means is that your child is looking to meet an internet friend in real life, and we’ve all seen too many episodes of Criminal Minds and CSI to know how that might end.
However, knowing that my kids could one day be texting slang for nudity or suggestive photos is just too much for me, as I’m sure it is for all parents. Since we can’t stop our kids from using terms like this if they really want to (go ahead and argue with me; we are all teens ones and we all know that if we really wanted to do something, we found a way to do it), we have to know how to keep them protected, so I’m going to offer some quick advice.
Keep the Lines of Communication Open
Your kids should always feel comfortable talking to you, and you them. The more open and honest you are with one another, the less likely your kids are to shut you out and keep you out of the loop. Talk to them. Don’t judge them or freak out on them every time they talk to you. Don’t make them feel that their opinions don’t matter or their feelings aren’t valid. Treat them with respect and they will do the same to you.
Talk to Your Kids About the Dangers of the Internet
They need to know that not everyone is who they say they are. They need to know how easy it is to create fake accounts and steal pictures from other people. They need to know how every post they put online can affect their lives, from showing strangers where they live to alerting them to the fact that you are not at home. You need to make them understand the dangers of putting things on the internet, like suggestive photos, and how things like that are never truly gone even if you delete them.
Monitor Your Kids
Just make it hard for them. Don’t allow them to have cell phones until they reach a certain age and then require that they are kept in a public space at all times – as in no bedroom use or storage. Don’t let them have computers or tablets in their rooms. Keep all computers in the common area of the house, and know all their passwords and accounts. Make them keep social media accounts as private as possible, and make them give you their passwords so that you can check on things when you feel you need to. You’re a parent; your kids have no privacy rights – know that. They are children who live with you, and you should not allow them to keep anything from you private; especially when it comes to the internet. Go ahead and say that you trust your kids and that they will never learn to trust you or respect you if you don’t offer the same, but you have to keep an eye on your kids at all times. Talking to a stranger on the internet is no different than talking to a strange man 10 years their senior in a dark, abandoned parking lot. You won’t let that happen, so why the former? Safety first, parents; safety first. Let me just finalize that thought by stating that it’s not necessarily your own child you have to worry about; you certainly want to know if other children are a cause for concern using slang like this.
Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images
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