There comes a point in a parent’s life where they might find themselves met with a teenager who wants to dress as a “sexy” something for Halloween.

And while some might say “crack on”; for others, this is truly the stuff of nightmares.

Before you respond with a flat out “no” though, therapists and psychologists want you to take a beat,

Fiona Yassin, international family psychotherapist, and founder and clinical director of The Wave Clinic, told HuffPost UK: “One of the most important takeaways for parents is to slow down before reacting.

“If your teen comes to you with a ‘sexy’ costume idea, take a moment to step back and reflect on whether it aligns with your family’s values.

“Sometimes that first reaction of shock says more about our own discomfort than about what’s really going on.”

Let’s be honest, if you respond with “no, end of discussion”, your teenager will likely wear the ‘sexy’ whatever-it-is costume anyway.

As clinical psychologist Dr Becky Kennedy pointed out on Instagram: “Your kid is going to show you a different costume and they’re going to store their sexy doctor outfit at their friend’s house and change into it the first second they are out of your sight.”

How experts suggest tackling it

Firstly, it might help to ask yourself, or even a trusted friend, whether the costume truly crosses a line, “or whether it’s just part of your teen testing boundaries, which is developmentally normal and........

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