Raising teenagers can be a trying time in a parents life. Compared to teenagers, toddlers seem to be walk in the park. The teenage years are sensitive ones, where emotions are felt with raw intensity. The teenage years also bring a struggle for power, as they yearn for their independence.
If you are finding raising your teen is challenging to you, there are steps that you can take to help things go more smoothly during this transition into young adulthood. This article will give you some great advice for living cohesively with your teenager.
You spend the majority of your parenthood protecting your child and keeping them safe from harm. When they become teenagers, you parental instinct is to protect them from all of the dangers of the world.
Don’t be scared to give your teenager a little room to breath. Trust that your teenager will remember the good values that you have taught them, and will make good decisions on their own. It can be difficult as a parent to give your child some freedom, but that is the only way they are going to learn the important skills they will need as an adult.
When you are raising a teenager, even the smallest comments can turn into full blown fights. It can be beneficial for both you and your teen to pick your battles wisely. Teenagers are very sensitive so if you think their friends dress weird, keep comments to yourself and remember that it is just a phase.
The teen years are about self discovery and your teenager will probably go through many different phases. As long as your teen is not hurting themselves or others, you should probably just roll your eyes and bite your tongue.
The dinner table is a great way to connect with your teen and find out what is going in in their life. Inviting your teenagers friends over for dinner can give you great insight as to the kind of people your teen in befriending. Try to keep the atmosphere as relaxed as possible, to help bring out the other teens true colors. Making things to formal can leave teenagers feeling uneasy. Talk as naturally as you can with the teens, and don’t make the dinner seem like a question and answer session. Help your teens friends feel like they can let their guard down and be themselves around you.
Teenagers have a way of knowing how to push all of your buttons. It is a great time to bond with your child as they are becoming their own person and young adult. It can also be a challenging time with a struggle for independence. Letting go a little as a parent is necessary, but is not always easy to do. You have to trust that your teen will take the good lessons and values that they have been taught, and apply them when you are not there to guide them. It is possible to live cohesively with your teenager, it just takes a little give and take.
