Behavioral Issues
It is normal for parents to be concerned about the kinds of friends their kids have. Who your child is hanging out with directly influences the way your kid acts, talks, and thinks. By the time your child becomes a teenager, it is usually peers that influence your child more than parents - friends that have the top role in their decision-making practices. That's why it is so important to stay connected with your child.
It's hard to imagine that a tween (a child between the age of 9 to 12) who is supposed to be happy and enjoy their childhood can be depressed and feel overcome by burdens and pressures. Parents many years ago were not faced with quite the same trials and tribulations when they were kids that kids are confronted with today.
Raging hormones, bad skin, relationship problems and peer pressure: that's the life of a teen. The life of a parent of a teen - it's not any easier. What do you do with an adolescent who talks back, is disrespectful, ignores you, prefers spending time with friends rather than family, doesn't follow the rules or is just plain difficult? The parenting strategies that worked when your child was younger may not work so well anymore, not now when you're dealing with an adolescent who seems to know everything!
- Throwing things
- Trying to hurt themselves
- Biting
- Screaming
- Kicking
Kids can be so sweet...kids can also be very mean. As a parent, it’s your natural instinct to protect your child – to keep him or her from getting physically and emotionally hurt. It’s a difficult enough challenge at home, but as soon as your child walks out that door, his fate is often in his own hands. You can’t be there when your child is taunted on the playground, talked about behind her back, or tricked and pushed around by older kids, but you can prepare your child to defend himself or herself emotionally against bullies.
