In addition to physical changes, puberty also involves emotional changes. Your child can suddenly turn into a rude and insolent teen that tests boundaries and their parents’ nerves. A teenager’s mindset can be shaken by their friendships, crushes and finding their own identity. A teen can often see the world in black and white; everything is either good or bad. Emotions can change from love to hate in seconds and the parents can have a hard time keeping up with the mood swings.
The teen is on a spiritual journey, searching for their identity, their own path, values, and essence. The journey may be hard at times, but it’s one that we all have to take. It has ups and downs, and sometimes it takes time to find your own thing. Excesses and risk-taking are also part of the process. Teens can express their mental state through radical changes in their appearance or by plastering the walls of their room with posters of their idols. It is important that the parents are able to expand their own world view to try and understand the teen. You should take an accepting attitude towards the mood swings and to try not to laugh at your teen even when things take a comic turn.
As a parent, you must always protect your child, but at the same time you should give them space to test and explore their boundaries. Sometimes it can be difficult to balance these two. A set of rules can provide the basic security every teenager needs. With trust and commonly agreed rules, you can give your teen more liberties, for example, in terms of curfews.
In the relationship between a teen and their parents, it is important to keep the channels of communication open, even if the situation at times can escalate into a shouting match. Love and boundaries – these are the tools that will help you support the growth of your teen into a healthy young adult.
