“The Condom Challenge” – A Worldwide Teen Trend

As you know, I am a parenting-teens expert and a clinical psychologist who keeps parents in the know and helps teens make good choices. Lately, though I am thinking of changing my title to The Teen Trend Tattler as I have been finding myself keeping you aware of the latest and most unusual teen trends.

Last week I told you about “gallon-smashing” and “doll face.” Before that, I told you about how teen girls are in pursuit of the elusive space between their thighs and how they try to whittle down their legs by dieting and exercise to achieve the elusive “thigh gap.” Well now, I am going to fill you in on a trend that appears to have gone viral. This trend is reported to be going on in the U.K. and the U.S. I follow the teen trends on YouTube and you too should have a look. Just go to YouTube and type in “The Condom Challenge” and you will see the latest trend in action.

Here, teens both males and females but primarily females are snorting condoms through their nostrils and then after a bit of coughing and gagging they are pulling them out through their mouths. I kid you not. I have absolutely no idea how or why this trend got started. I do, however, know that teens are certainly up for the risky and the outrageous and some laughs so this trend may meet those requirements.

I suppose the condom could get stuck and there could be some embarrassing visits to emergency rooms. I doubt that any teen would like that to happen. Teens are so confusing because they are by nature very self conscious but when among their peers they seem to lose their inhibitions.

I have another idea. Perhaps, teens are uncomfortable with the idea of condoms and are simply expressing this anxiety by being silly with them. Look they are choosing condoms rather than balloons, right. Or maybe by uploading these videos to YouTube the teens are hoping to have their videos go viral and to have 15 minutes of fame. Maybe you have some more ideas about why teens would snort condoms. I was worried enough about teens snorting drugs but this has me scratching my head.

Are teens simply the most creative age group. Your thoughts?