Adolescence is a complicated stage. But not only for teenagers, but also for parents who have to deal with it.
The adolescence is the stage at which children start to become adults. But this is not something that happens overnight, but it is a long process, full of hormonal, physiological changes and new experiences. This usually leads to strange behaviors, taking into account the people they used to be, as they are feeling the person they will become.
Being a father or mother in this process is not easy either since the way to become adults is to move away from dependence and security offered by the family nucleus; and although these adolescents are not prepared for their emotional emancipation, they must begin to take responsibility for their own lives.
Adolescence in 10 tips
So that this process is not done uphill and concord reigns in your homes, we offer a series of tips that will help you cope in the best way. Take note!
- Find out: look for books, articles written by professionals, talk with psychologists … The more information you have, the better you can react to the contingencies that arise.
- Speak things before they happen: one of the things that affect most in adolescence is the irruption of sex in their lives, in all its meaning. Because it is a taboo subject in many families, it is not usually talked about which are the safe behaviors, nor the emotions that usually appear associated with it, but their bodies will undergo changes and they will begin to notice new sensations that they did not have before. Therefore, it is important to anticipate
- Put yourself in place: we have all been teenagers, and as such, we have done crazy things or things that we cannot justify now and that we would not do. But just as we remember those things, we remember how lost we were and the dilemmas that nested in our heads. Because of this, it is important to empathize with the adolescents and try to understand them, without this meaning that you should abandon your position as a father or mother.
- Do not argue everything: Although you probably know many of the answers that your son or daughter seeks, you must let him/herself discover some of them. If you do not let him do anything he wants, you will only open a gap between them, and encourage an attitude of rebellion that could get out of hand. Let her dye her hair, reasonably choose the style of clothing she wants, and save her bullets for when the important battles arrive.
- Do not expect too much: when you reach adulthood, the world and yourself expect your son to begin to position himself at this stage, but he must do it at his own pace. Maturity takes time to arrive, and the skills that it brings, too, so let it give you some blinds and show him that you support him no matter what happens.
- Keep your child informed: due to the nature of adolescence, many times these adolescents experience things they do not know anything about, and they do not care. Inform your child of the risks and benefits of new experiences offered by life, such as sex.
- Be alert to alarm situations: many times, the path your child chooses can lead you to dead ends, which can put you in danger. If you are attentive to the danger indicators (excessive weight gain or loss, drastic changes in personality, missing classes continuously, etc.), you will be able to detect the risks before they become irreversible.
- Respect your privacy: as part of reaching adulthood, intimacy becomes a right and important aspect; and even if you continue to live under your own roof, you must begin to release the leash progressively so that you can acquire self-awareness and self-control that will be vital in your future.
- Pay attention to what you see and what you read: without being watched, it is important that, although you are leaving more freedom, you still control a little what you see or read, since the world is full of bad people who are trying to take advantage of confused young people.
- Set standards and make them: establish norms that allow your son or daughter to develop correctly, and that moves him away from harmful environments. It rewards the fulfillment of the norms with greater amplitude of these and punishes the disobedience with greater severity.
If you follow these tips, you will soften the coexistence in this delicate moment, because, although it will still be difficult to educate a teenager, with a well-disposed mind and clear things, you can achieve it.
