Friday, July 22, 2016

Three tips for handling entitled teens

Do you have teenagers who do what they want, ignore you and control the emotional climate in the family? Welcome to the world of the entitled teen!

This situation can arise where parents have been permissive, made no demands and set no consequences for actions. Or where parents are polarised -simply not on the same page when it comes to raising kids, with one being strict and the other too laid back. It can also arise where parents are separated or divorce. The absence of one parent leaves a gap in the family structure which the older teenager steps in and fills.

So once you have the problem, what can you do about it?

Here are our three tips:-

1. STEP UP - this is both a mindset and an action. Realise you are the parent, establish expectations and consequences about homework, going out,  doing chores. Put a plan in place and stick to it.
2. GET ON THE SAME PAGE - your parenting styles might be different, but you want to enforce the same rule right? So work on getting on the same page. Otherwise your teen will fall through the cracks while the two of you are arguing about the best way to go about things.
3. GET BACK UP - counselling can be a great back up to assist you in making clear decisions.

You know you've got a problem, and you know you need to deal with it. You're already half way there. Still struggling? Email us to find out about our counselling and family therapy sessions.

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