Adolescence is an adventure for teens . It is a time of discovery, a stage to discover creativity, strength and courage.
While teens are going through physical, social, and cognitive changes, they also have to experience their fair share of emotional and psychological changes.
But just because a child goes to college or high school does not mean they are emotionally matured to address their everyday challenges.
Schools also do not conduct any form of mental health evaluation before admitting students..
It is however important that adolescents understand their emotions to know how to think, feel, and act, as well as handle stress, relate with others, and make important healthy choices.
As children asserts their individualities and independence during adolescence, many parents wonder what they can do to help their teenagers.
Here are few tips to help raise mentally strong kids:
- Guide your teenagers to discover and develop their uniqueness, gifts, talents and skills
- Take time to support and teach them how to set and achieve goals.
- Listen to their opinions and help guide their thought processes. Do not be judgemental, otherwise you prevent them from confiding in you.
- Apply wisdom when resolving conflicts and desist from comparing them with others.
- Build their confidence and self-esteem by praising/reward their specific achievements.
- Praise nurtures your child’s confidence and sense of self. By praising them, you’re showing your child how to think and talk positively about themselves.
- Be transparent with your teen: you can let them know you are tired/stressed and show them how you deal with your difficult feelings. This will help them know how to handle/cope with stress.It also creates an atmosphere of honesty, trust, and respect.
- Allow your teens make mistakes: it might be tough watching a child mess up, however, you can turn their mistakes into learning opportunities. Teach them never to be afraid of failures or making mistakes so that they can be bold to initiate rewarding actions in life.
- Involve them in problem solving: As teens, they are starting to explore new ways of looking at things and thinking about things. When you intentionally allow them solve problems, they will not just be creative but be brave and will show you unexpected paths. You will be surprised at what they can teach you and what you can learn from them.
- Guide your adolescents to take positive risks by daily engaging them productively and letting them know the consequences of taking negative risks.
- Teach them to help others and not be selfish. Let your teenagers know that a life of service is more rewarding and fulfilling. The feeling of fulfilment boost their emotions and build their resilience skills.
In conclusion, the adolescent period is the healthiest time in a person’s lifespan with high physical and cognitive abilities. Therefore, it is the parents’ responsibility to nurture, support and guide them to successfully navigate through the period of adolescence despite their vulnerabilities. Parents should intentionally build the life skills of their adolescents to make them responsible future adults.