Calling Parents Of Defiant Teens: 8 Ways To Get Your Child Back On Track

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Parenthood. It’s arguably the hardest job in the world. Sure, you may have a job that’s full of pressure and responsibility, but it’s nothing when compared to raising children. When you create a life, you may think you can take it easy once they’re past the terrible twos. However, we’ve got news for you ? wait till they reach their teens!

With all those hormones flying about, your teen is going to need all the support they can get. If your teen is defiant and unruly, it’s time to take action. This phase won’t last forever! Here are some ways on how to get your teen back on track.

Speak To Your Teen

You’ll find teens will likely tell you why they are acting the way that they’re doing. However, it’s very rarely the actual reason! As a parent, it’s your job to listen to what they’re saying and read between the lines. Your child needs to figure out what they’re feeling. In some cases, they need to be walked through such things. Something as simple as sitting down with your child and giving them the space to talk and open up can be a real help.

Reiterate House Rules

As your child reaches their teens, they’re more than capable of doing chores and helping around the house. Whether it’s keeping their room tidy or washing the dishes, if you have house rules in place, reiterate them to your teen! Many teens will try and challenge such rules and often ignore them. Rather than admitting defeat, you need to stick to them and make sure they’re aware of the rules.

Learn More About Their Behavior

We were all teens at one point in life, even if it was decades ago! While some behaviors you may identify with, others you may wonder where on earth your child got them from. The good news is there are guides that can help you learn more about their behavior. There are also risky behaviors that teenagers engage in which you need to know about. Putting yourself in their shoes can be a real revelation.

Involve Your Family

It can feel like you’re the only person in the world dealing with a troubled teen. The real answer to this is there are millions of parents in the same boat! It’s good to have your family’s backing behind you. You may benefit from family counseling if things are getting out of hand. A troubled teen is a family affair and involves everyone. To create a healthy home environment, other members of the family need to cooperate too.

Teach Problem-Solving

If there is one crucial skill your teen needs to learn and master, its problem solving. One of your duties should be teaching your teen how to solve problems. In many cases, their bad attitude stems from the fact they are handling problems poorly and aren’t sure how to react properly. As long as you have patience and show them ways around their problems, this can be a big life lesson they’ll take on board and use going forward.

Express Love

While expressing love may not have the immediate results, you’re after, showing how much you care for your teen can help them get back on track. You need to be consistent with expressing love, even if you secretly want to throttle them! If you stay consistent with your behavior, your teen will quickly realize just how much you care about their wellbeing.

Follow Through With Consequences

When your teen is acting out of line, it’s important you have consequences in place and stick by them. When you’re consistent with consequences, this is a helpful way of teaching your teen about accountability. For example, if your teen has lashed out in anger at you, you may want to limit their screen time or take away their Xbox. No matter how much they try and twist your arm from doing this, you must follow through.

Coordinate With The School

If your troubled teen is having issues at school and is being disruptive, it’s your duty to coordinate with their teachers to find a solution. You should have an active interest in their education. You can speak to your teen’s guidance counselor too. This will help you monitor their progress and gain more of an understanding of what could be causing your child to act up. You need to appreciate that your child may act entirely differently in school than they do at home, so trust what the teachers say.

If you feel your teen is acting out of character or you don’t recognize them anymore, try not to worry. There are plenty of things you can do that can help navigate your child through these troublesome years and come out the other side mature and ready to spread their wings in the adult world.

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