It’s a gray Monday morning. Walking through the parking lot is worse than normal. People keep staring and you don’t know why. Your parking couldn’t have been that bad. Maybe it is your outfit; you had second-guessed those shoes. Insecurities creep up like a wave drowning out your sensibilities with fear of the unknown. Entering the building is even more humiliating — a whole group of basketball players snicker and mutter under their breath as you scurry by. All you want to do is get to class. As the day drags on, you notice your fellow classmates’ judgmental glares. As you walk into your third period English class a good friend sprints to your side with wide eyes. Never before have you seen her so shocked and worried. “Look! Look,” she cries, as she waves your nude body in front of your face. By fourth period the whole school knows about the picture you sent Friday night. It was only intended for one person, but now hundreds have seen your exposed and vulnerable body on illuminated screens showing something that should have never been sent.

Many teenagers hear the stories about students filled with regret after sending photos of their bodies; especially, when the worst happens and it’s shown to several other people. This scenario is explored in movies and modern television shows, and sometimes even rumored to happen to someone close by; however many don’t picture themselves in that situation. “It will never happen to me.” What if it did?

“[It changes] for particular individuals,” said Sabrina Aronson, Psychologist with Burrell Behavioral Health Center. “I think for some of [the senders], they do this because they want to be liked. They want to fit in. Sometimes it’s peer pressure. Sometimes it’s [the sender] wanting to please the person they care about.”

There are many different reasons why different people send pictures of themselves. Some send them for attention from their peers or because they want to feel like they belong — like they are wanted. Rarely, but possibly, some send explicit pictures because traumatic experiences in which they were exposed to something sexually disturbing or emotionally damaging leading them to make the wrong choices.

“I don’t think anything is 100 percent ‘because this happened to me I’m going to do this’ for anything …,” said Tamara, a high school guidance counselor. “However often times it unfortunately trends that way, because traumatic experiences bring on traumatic experiences. These experiences can affect the sender’s judgment, just like anything can.”

With smartphones, tablets, and laptop computers, taking a picture has become easier and more convenient than ever.

“I think this is a generational thing as well, especially with social media and just the easy access of a camera. I mean, [when I was] growing up it was a big deal if I had a camera, but now pretty much everyone has a camera. People don’t think. ‘Well it’s just me, it’s just my friend, it’s just my boyfriend.’ Well, yes, but it’s also on social media which makes it permanent,” said Tamara.

New applications on smartphones like Snapchat allow users to send a picture or video for a certain amount of time. This time varies from one to ten seconds. Many users think that once the image is sent it will permanently disappear after the amount of time it is set at. However this is not the case. The receiver can screenshot the image and do whatever they want with it. These pictures can be photoshopped or passed onto others.

“I think many people don’t think of Snapchat as a texting service,” said Troy, a junior in high school. “I’ve been sent images that have made me feel uncomfortable and because of this I think Snapchat definitely promotes sexting. People think it’s ‘confidential’ for the most part, and it’s easier to do than make toast.”

Participating in sexting can cause emotional turmoil if the receiver doesn’t give the attention the sender is looking for, or if that image is shown to other people. The amount of emotional turmoil one may have depends on a person’s resiliency.

“A majority of the kids that I’ve conversed with have some form of regret for having made that decision,” said Tamara. “There are entirely too many emotional consequences to name. It all depends on where your original makeup sits. Some people crumble when they lose a contest, or get a B over an A … and other people say ‘you know what? It’s all part of [life]. I don’t want that to ever happen again, so I’m not going to let it happen again, and I’m going to always get my A or make sure I win’… but you can never guarantee that.”

Not only can the students who participate in sexting have emotional damage, but they can also get into trouble with the law.

“I think teenagers know they can get into a lot of trouble when it comes to sexting, but when they do it, they don’t think through it,” said Ceceley, senior in high school. “I don’t think they know the extent of that trouble, like being charged with a felony.”

However, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s website, “If you forward a sexual picture of someone underage, you are as responsible for this image as the original sender. You could face child pornography charges, go to jail, and have to register as a sex offender (if you’re over the age of 18). Think about the consequences of taking, sending, or forwarding a sexual picture of yourself or someone else underage. You could get kicked off of sports teams, face humiliation, lose educational opportunities, and even get in trouble with the law.”
According to Mobile Media Guard, “Under Missouri law if a minor is caught possessing or distributing sexually explicit images of a minor (including images of themselves) then such minor shall be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor, if it is their first offense, and may be punishable by up to 1 year in jail and a $1,000 fine. If convicted, the minor will not need to register as a sex offender in the State of Missouri.” Although juveniles in the state of Missouri cannot be placed on the sex offender list, they can still be charged with misdemeanors and felonies pertaining to sexting. Some of these charges, according to the Missouri Revised Statutes, are:
Promoting child pornography in the first degree, Class B felony.

Possession of child pornography. “The offense of possession of child pornography is a class C felony if the person possesses one still image of child pornography or one obscene still image. The offense of possession of child pornography is a class B felony if the person possesses more.”

Public display of explicit sexual material. “Class A misdemeanor unless the person has pleaded guilty to or has been found guilty of an offense under this section committed at a different time, in which case it is a class D felony.”
“I always hope, and pray, daily, that kids will have more self-worth, and be more private,” said Tamara. “I don’t mean be prudish, without wanting to live and explore the world, but there are rules. There are moral standards. This doesn’t make anyone a horrible person, but why is it such a pressing thing to make sure that somebody has seen your unclothed body? Teenagers are still trying to navigate and figure out who they are, so why would you want to let somebody else see all of you?”