I need a problem...

Gosh, I thought teen guys -er-... I didn't think they'd have 'that' problem. An illness, perhaps? Or stark raving nervous fear? I probably shouldn't even have posted since I really got nuthin'. But, maybe, someone else will jump in now.

Nerves. He's a nervous wreck. That's all I can think of. Sorry!

I think some underlying illness or accident would be really interesting.

Sexual abuse as a child?

I knew someone with that had your characters very problem. Turned out he was gay. He tried, oh he tried to refuse it but it isn't a choice. Every time he was with a woman it just felt to him as wrong.

Another reason might be a mother issue. Mother hater, mother lover, abusive mother where he relates all women to his mother.


If you want to stay away from psychoses, the male penis is equipped with a valve that regulates the blood to cause the erection. I'm sure there are possibilities of irregularly developed organs or even brain chemistry involvement (it is a pretty complicated event from a biological point of view). You might see if low blood pressure could attribute.

Finally, embarrassment. He wouldn't need to be undersized to think he was undersized. Although I do recall a fellow from gym class that I actually felt sorry for. We males can be pretty sensitive about our equipment.

I knew a guy that was playing to a fantasy and used a vacuum cleaner as a partner. He got stuck. He was so embarrassed that he tried to cut it off. It stayed of course but it never worked again.

Shady Lane said:

I think some underlying illness or accident would be really interesting.

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What was that show? SOAP? He accidentally shot off a testicle and it rendered him impotent. An accident is highly likely. Be creative. A minibike and a fence post could really mess a guy up.

Here's an article on male impotence:

http://www.massgeneral.org/children/adolescenthealth/articles/aa_impotence.aspx

there are some interesting reasons why they can't preform. I thought it was interesting that steriods were a reason. Now that could be interesting if he was taking steriods for sports reasons or if his coach was giving them to him which caused the impotence. I know the steriods can lead to other problems. just a thought.

kim

Jocks are probably the most likely to actually have a problem. The jock act is there to cover up their insecurity.

Ooo. Dancre's idea is good! Not to mention topical.

I really like the steroid idea! Very cool.

Yep -- or, well, he could be in the closet and possibly not even know it, or be willing to admit it. (Is that the cliche issue you already thought of?)

Or maybe he does, and he's trying to 'cure' himself.

Or it could be that he's just trying to respond to peer pressure, or even 'measure up' to his Old Man who believes that all boys should have done the deed by age seventeen.

Or there's subconscious guilt -- how's his religious background?

How 'bout... whoops, there's the bell, and I'm off for lunch.

reenkam said:

I really like the steroids idea. I hadn't fully thought out his "jock" character yet, but making him the mvp in a couple sports could be perfect. And if his coach is slipping him the pills then he definitely wouldn't go around telling about it...

And the girl's, well...she's not the most observant of people, so she wouldn't figure that out. (Though her story's kind of sad anyway).

Thanks Dancre! Now that I have that idea I can get back to the writing.

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Glad I can help. There's so much you could do with the steriods also. It would eventually lead him into the hospital or in jail or dead. Good luck!!!

kim

There was a Law & Order SVU episode around this very topic a while back: high-school kid gets hauled in for hitting and attempting sexual assault on a girl -- his best friend. He's a top athlete.
*SPOILER WARNING - highlight whited text below*
Turns out (he's been taking 'roids... which, it turns out, he's been stealing them from his dad... who was pressuring him to get a sports scholarship... who happens to be a retired cop... who happened to be one of Elliot's buddies back in the day.)

Look at the Chris Benoid (?) story. He took steriods and killed his family. It's way tooo scary!!!

kim

He could be taking antidepressants. One of the side effects of antidepressants like Zolaft for some men is that it interferes with sexual performance. He might not want anyone to know he is taking antidepressants.

I know you already have several ideas, but here's another one. Just a thought to throw out there. She could be drunk or have taken drugs or something else that impairs her thinking and he doesn't want his first time to be like that. Or something similar to that. I don't know if that helped at all. Just a thought or so.

Maybe he's depressed and on zoloft because he's gay in the closet

I bet that would help his impotence.

If he's a youngish teen and nervous, his problem could be umm, brevity. Some teens are so freaked out by the thought of sexual activity that they become Less-Than-A-Minute Man. I could tell you some tales.

Does he have to be unable to perform, or can you give him a reason for not wanting to have sex?