Sugar daddy is a very popular term nowadays. It means a successful, wealthy and experienced man who conquers young girls through expensive gifts. It is said that girls accept this type of relationship because they are interested, but the reason may have an emotional background

For Mary Castro, Psychologist at Clínica Ricardo Palma, teenage girls are in a stage where they need a lot of attention, but unfortunately, parents don’t understand it that way and prefer to care for their own affairs. This creates an emotional emptiness in girls and motivates them to seek that lack of attention and affection in others. It can also happen when parents impose many restrictions at home or because girls believe they are not getting all the material things they deserve

Immediate action

To protect your daughter from sugar daddies traps, the specialist advises the following:

• Know what activities your daughter does after studying. Does she stay in the parks? Does she go to her friends’ houses to do supposed assignments? Is she spending so much time on the Internet? It’s not about watching her to the point of suffocating her, but the idea is that you know where she is and what she is doing
• Foster communication and trust with her. We all work and have thousands of pending issues, but this is not a valid excuse. Just remember that you are her mother, not her friend. Do not lose the sense of authority
• Take a case as reference, either from a neighbor or from television, and show the dangers to which teenagers are exposed when they are romantically involved with sugar daddies

Signs

• If you notice that your daughter starts having things she can’t afford, don’t turn a blind eye. You have to stop this situation as soon as possible. Keep calm and the first thing you should do is ask how she got them, listen to everything I tell you, even if your version is not credible
•  Tell her what you think. You could say: I think you’re dating someone much older than you. That is not correct; neither is to receive such expensive “gifts”. It’s not bad to have fun; it’s typical of your age. Just be careful, not all people are good, there are people who give you things because they want something in return.” If dialogue works, the next step is to look for psychological help

Lic. Mary Castro
Psychologist at Clínica Ricardo Palma