It is not that we experience and encounter stressful situations only from our adult age, the ever-known myth. That’s right, kids in their teenage to get stressed over problems that they find uneasy. And no such stress at any stage of our life is more minor a matter of concern than the other.
You might as well get some recalling memories regarding your stressful encounters in your teenage years. So the essential point is, we have stress in every stage of our life but during our teenage, we are more likely to get affected by stress as then we still haven’t attained much maturity. Teenagers are all energetic and filled with desires for new experiences, but they can’t correctly think upon and handle stressful situations, which is why they get the most affected. And this makes it essential for us who have passed that stage of life to help the teenagers that we know, most essentially our kids.
How should you talk to your stressed teenager kid?
1.Make a routine – Don’t make talking a different activity only in times of a problem or when something is needed to be solved. Make talking a regular exercise with your teenager kid so that it doesn’t feel like an extra task to them during any problem with you.
2.Share Your Experience- The greatest solace for a person going through a bad phase is knowing that someone else probably was in the same situation and they overcame it. Telling your teenager about your life hardships and how you faced them can be very motivating. They will look up to you and think if my parents did it, why can’t I? Just make sure you don’t pressurize your kid in the process and compare them or belittle them. Make the approach more supportive and motivating. Tell them that you will always be there for them no matter what.
3.Listen – If you want your kids to tell you about their problems and have your role in solving or helping them out, then you must portray as and be a good listener to them. No matter how tiny or strange it might be, hear every single bit of. This makes sure that they will come to you with their big problems too. When your kid tells you something, do not interrupt and just listen to them. If they are having a hard time confronting their state of mind, encourage them to speak. Just do not cut in between and counter them.
4.Learn about them – Talking to any person out of stress is only possible when you build a connection with them, i.e., they feel connected when they open up to you. And for making a strong connection with your kid, learn about them more regarding what they like and where their interest lies. Further, you need to value their choice and never pinpoint it. If something is harmful, talk to them about the bad side rather than forcefully stopping them.
5.Understand – Everything regarding problems, connections, etc., around other minds, depends upon understandability. The more you understand your kid’s thoughts and feelings, the more they will look towards you as their mentor and, most importantly, a friend. So instead of shutting them out for mistakes or wrong situations, engage yourself with them in improving it.
6.Build trust – Not just by saying but by showing through understanding and caring that you will always be there for them no matter what happens, is the biggest strength you can give to your teenager. The mere idea of the fact that their parents will support them always will make them much more powerful in terms of mental strength and confidence.
7.Give hope – Expose them to the power of hope by constantly telling them that something good might happen anytime. We just need to keep our hopes unshattered.
8.Stay and make calm – Make sure you are calm before helping your teen out of a stressful situation. Then calm him/her down by implying soothing methods because once calmed, they themselves would be able to see, analyze and understand the situation clearly.
9.Take Expert Help– If you think that the situation is grave, do not hesitate to engage in some expert advice. It is always to act late than never. A therapist is a certified professional who can identify the problematic areas and aid your child accordingly. If you ignore the extreme symptoms now, you may have to pay for them later.
So as a parent, it becomes extremely important for you to be quick in response and beginning with soothing your teenager. And remember, don’t overdo anything as you need to give them privacy too for them to understand everything slowly. So let them take their time; meanwhile, you show an ample amount of patience and faith in them.
