Teenage years are often one of the most difficult phases in life.
These years can be exciting, yet challenging years for your teens. You may feel like they are pushing you away as they begin to express demand for freedom.
However, you’ll feel less annoyed if you make an effort to comprehend their emotions and the difficulties they’re encountering. Doing so will help the bond between you and your teen to be stronger than ever.
Here are some ways you can strengthen your bond with you teens:
#1 Be Empathetic Towards Their Physical Changes
Your adolescent will go through a number of bodily changes, and as a result, they may become overly concerned with how they look and how others perceive them.
Here are some helpful tips on how you can talk to your teenagers
- Avoid making negative remarks about how they look or dress. Instead, guide them and give them tips on how they can look good and feel better.
- Assure them that what they’re going through is normal rather than emphasizing any of their discrepancies.
- Avoid making unfair comparisons. Let them progress through the adolescent years at their own pace. This will improve their mental wellbeing.
- Motivate them to take steps toward a more positive self-perception by engaging in activities that can have a positive impact on their self-esteem. Whether that be establishing a new hobby or joining school affairs/ clubs. You can also discover some new hobbies together.
# Deal With Their Emotions As Calm As you Can Be
Teenage years are not only marked by tremendous changes in physical but as well as in emotional aspects as caused by hormonal shifts. These can be a difficult time for them to cope with emotional swings.
Hormones and emotions can have an effect on a teen’s mental health. Here are some helpful tips on dealing with their emotions:
- If your teen is acting out, remember you need to be patient and calm. Your adolescent just needs some time to cool off and then you can talk to them about it.
- Take the time to hear them out and learn what’s triggering their distress. In this way, they will feel heard and cared for, which will help them calm down.
- Do your best to avoid an argument. Instead, stay objective with your opinions and perspective while you explain your side to them.
- Children reaching puberty express a growing desire for increased freedom of choice. This is a time where they figure out who they are and how to best fit in social groups. Take in mind that this is just perfectly normal and this has nothing to do against you;
They may place a higher value on their friendships and allow their peers to have a greater impact on their decisions and actions. But not all peer influences are negative. Your presence is essential in establishing boundaries and guidelines whenever their outside influences become harmful.
Here are some things you can do:
- Give him or her space at home, but attempt to spark up conversations to learn more about his or her life. Instead of solely talking about schoolwork, try talking to them about their interests outside of the school as well.
- Be genuinely interested in their interests, but avoid coming across as intrusive. You can help them boost their self-esteem and confidence if you encourage them to share their thoughts and feelings and show an interest in what they have to say.
- Believe in them and give them some space to hang out with their friends; you may not agree with the people they hang out with, but it’s best not to criticize them for it. Instead, open up lines of discussion by asking about their common interests. Make them aware of the risks of participating in harmful or unsafe activities, and offer some options that they might find more appealing. Get to know them better by hosting a get-together for their friends at your house.
- Avoid public reprimands whenever possible; if you must punish them, do so in private, do not humiliate them.
Conclusion
To sum up, here’s how you can make the most of the time with your teens to deepen your connection with them:
- Try to be empathetic with them
- Take part in fun activities as a group and enjoy some quality time together.
- Inspire them by showing enthusiasm and an interest in their work.
You may get started on these key points right away. The time and effort you invest in creating a parent-child relationship will go a long way toward fostering a stronger and better bond between you and your child.