How To Cope With Troublesome Teenagers
Being the parent of a teenager these days is more difficult than ever before. They face so many more temptations and bad influences than the teenagers of years past. Some teens seem to be moodier and tend to lash out towards their parents. If these are issues that you are dealing with in your home, the following guide may help you cope.
When you are having a hard time dealing with the way that your teenager is acting, stop and think about what it was like when you were a teenager yourself. It may help you gain a new perspective about what they are going through and how you can deal with it. You may find that the new perspective is all that is needed to gain control over the situation and come to a decision about how to handle the situation.
Really listen to what your teen is trying to tell you and gain a better understanding of how they feel. If you are just hearing them and not listening to what they are trying to tell you, both of you will become frustrated and make a difficult situation even worse.
Chances are, your teen is trying to push you away. Even though they are doing this, you must know that they need you now more than they ever have. Kids at this age are not very good at asking for help or even accepting it when you offer it, so they will be meaner and push you away so they do not have to come to the realization that what you are saying is right or in their best interest.
One of the scariest parts of being a parent to a teenager is having to allow them some freedom. Knowing what they can get into when they are out on their own can be horrifying when you know that they are out there on their own being forced to make important decisions that could mold their futures. If you try to keep them from their freedom though, you will likely cause more problems and could push them toward making the wrong decisions just to teach you a lesson.
Pick your battles! If your teen asks to go to a friends house that you know is not trouble on a school night, maybe you should give in and allow them to go. This is not a battle worth having if you know that they are going to be supervised and not getting into trouble. Save the battles for things that you know could endanger your teen.
Trust is a two way street. If you want them to trust you, you have to show them a little trust as well. If your teen does not feel that he can come to you with any problem that he is facing, he will turn to someone else to talk it over with. Trust is important during these years and should be protected at both ends.
Parenting a teen can make the first few weeks of a new baby seem like a cake walk. Use what you have learned here to make living with your teen a little less stressful for both of you.
