Teenage Stress Management
March 18, 2007
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Often times the harder we try to reach our teenager, the farther away we seem to get. Stress is a fact of life for everyone, but during the teenage years our kids are getting the first doses of it. Here are a few tips to help teenagers and their parents work together to decrease the stressful situations that affect them.
Give your teen their space. This is hard for mothers because we need to know everything that is going on at every second. Suspend that behavior, as hard as it may be, for a week or two and see what happens. If your teen remarks that they don’t want to talk about something right then, respect their wishes. When you’ve been hurt, it’s hard to put the pain into words while the feelings are still fresh. Let them know that you are ready to listen when they are ready to talk and leave it at that.
Remember when you were their age. Take an honest look back at the things you did and the situations you encountered as a teenager. No one’s adolescence was perfect. Some were bullied; some were the bullies; some were popular, and some were outcasts. See your child’s attitude through those memories. What would you have wanted your parents to say to you in that same situation?
Take an inventory of your home life. Maybe you are getting a divorce or getting remarried. Has the family moved recently? Leaving old friends behind and having to make new ones is stressful. Home should be the one place where they feel safe and understood. If home life has sustained an upheaval of sorts lately, sit down and ask your teen to tell you what he or she thinks about it all.
Give them a journal. Teens have a hard time expressing thoughts that they don’t understand themselves. Buy them a journal. Tell your teen that it is reserved for their thoughts and will not be looked at by anyone else. Show them that their feelings are important not only to them, but to you, too.
Actively listen to them. My pet peeve is not being listened to when I am talking. If you are watching the television or reading a book, then you are not listening. To actively listen, make eye contact with your teen. Splitting your attention between them and something else gives them permission to do the same to you when you want to talk to them.
Raising a teenager is not easy. We all make mistakes even when we have their best interests at heart. See if these suggestions make a difference in the relationship with your teen. Remember, they want you to love and help them just as much as you do.
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Posted by admin | Filed Under Health & Wellness, Home Business & Telecommuting
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How to finally bring a hot meal to the table every night of the week - even if you work full time or think you have the craziest schedule on earth!
[...] teen will soon be an adult and how you handle stressful situations will influence how your teen will react to their own stressful situations. Being a positive force [...]