Thursday, 7 May 2009

Teenage Stress and Aggression - What Can I Do?

By Jonh Anthony

Let's face it; the teen years were stressful for all of us. But now day's teenage stress and aggression can become a serious problem. Life for teens today just isn't as simple as when we went through it. Our kids are bombarded with challenges that we never had. It is important to learn what you can do to help your teen through this challenging and formative time.

Never before has so much information been available from so many sources. It used to be that if a teen had a tough day at school or a fight with a friend they could at least seek the safety of home. Now, thanks to technology, there is no escape. Things like texting, email and instant messages can keep constant stress and pressure on your child. Many teens do not know how to deal with this and act out aggressively to friends, siblings and parents.

It is important to monitor your teen's mood and behavior at several key points in the day to find the root cause of stress and aggression. Almost like a daily diagnostic checklist. Happy in the morning...check. Happy after school...check. Moody after online chat with friends...found the source.

Once a source of stress is found it is important to act. If a round of texting is created the problem it is not likely that your teen will text their way out of it. This does not mean you simply take the cell away and solve the problem. This will probably just make things worse. The best approach is to talk to your child and give them the opportunity to work the problem out with you. Yes, I know it is not that easy talking to an angry teen but it will get easier for both of you if you stick with it.

Other teenage stress factors can include an overbooked schedule. It is great to have your teen involved in sports and school events but too many planned activities can be the causes of teen stress. It is important to make wise decisions with your teen about how they will spend their time and what groups and activities are worth pursuing.

-Talk to your teen to find out which sports and group activities are important.

-Do not over plan your child's time. Allow time each week for your teen to see friends, enjoy a hobby or hangout on the couch in front of the television. This is fine so long as it is not all they do all week.

Another key factor in the mood of you teen is sleep. What is really happening when they head off to bed? If they are not sleeping enough you may need to address the distractions in their room. Things like televisions, computers, video games and cell phones can cause a teen to stay up for hours. Lack of sleep could contribute to teenage stress and aggression.

We all know that the teen years are not easy and will include some mood swings and tense times. When it goes beyond occasional behavioral problems you will need to act. Changing behavior is best done early on. It will be more difficult to break the patterns of stress and anger the longer you wait. Depending on the level of anger and aggression you may need to seek the help of an anger management counselor. This can be a difficult but it is important to you help before the aggression leads to serious problems.

More information on teenage behavior modification can be found at http://www.AngerManagementSupport.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jonh_Anthony



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