Teen Tantrums: How to Tackle Raging Teens
Teens throwing nasty tantrums has become an almost usual behavior now. We had been in our teenage too and our mothers won’t say that we were the most civilized back then, but this generation is taking this to the next level! As kids enter their teenage, all their manners simply vanish! They would forget to use the magic word and they’re always in a rush and asking a simple question would make them feel us poking our noses into their lives! Jeez, these teens can be so handful sometimes!
Teens and temper issues
Call it the raging hormones or trying to be cool, teenagers simply love to be hot tempered. Everything you ask them will make them irritated and everything you do for them will make them embarrassed! They just want to be left alone and that’s something we parents are not good at! Dealing with teenage emotions is not easy. There are frequent mood swings and they don’t want to be corrected. And to top it all they become over-sensitive too. So if you try to reprimand them, they’d take it the wrong way and think you n o longer love them. They said that ‘terrible-two’ was bad, ‘terrible-thirteen’ is worse!
How to tackle teen temper tantrums
Okay, I’ve squeezed all the t’s right there but I wished it were that easy to tackle the teenage meltdowns, too. But nothing is easy with teenagers, is it? But trust me, these tips can make it tad bit manageable!
The golden rule
The golden rule is “self-control”! There is nothing like mastering the art of self-control, especially when there you have teens to tackle! So always remind yourself that you’re not the teenager and you can control your rage! So when you feel their pitch rising, lower yours and watch it do the magic! Don’t make them feel insecure. But if you lose your temper, things will get out of hands!
No cross-questions, please!
Try not to put questions after the other as if they’re in a massive inquisition. It would just simply put them off. If they’ve done something wrong, try to be as calm as you can pretend to be and discuss. Starting your conversation with, “Were you out of you mind” will get you on the wrong foot and your teen will instantly switch to the defensive, stubborn mode!
Set consequences and follow through
Next time they throw a tantrum, tell them that they’d have to face such and such consequence and then don’t back down. This could include confiscating their phone or locking it for three hours. Even disconnecting the internet will do. And next time if they repeat, do what you said you would so they would know that your warnings are not without effect! This could actually be interesting and something really effective – locking their phones for an hour or two! You can use the parental control apps to lock their mobile device. No matter what they do, they won’t be able to use their phones unless you unlock them and this will teach them a lesson or two. You could even assign some chores like doing the dishes to get the phone unlocked.
Channelize their anger
Don’t wait for them to throw their tantrums to do something about it. Instead, keep them engage them in creative or a little challenging activity off and on. This should keep them busy and also channelize their anger into something creative or productive. You could get them enrolled into some yoga class or go to the gym and exert. This will certainly add to their mental calm and will take the negative energy out of them.
Get them professional help
If none if these tips work and you find your teen getting increasingly aggressive, it’s time to seek professional help. You should get them enrolled them onto some anger management class or get some professional have one-on-one sessions with your child.
Teens will be teens and they’re going through a crazy phase so be easy on them and take them seriously. Listen to them more and encourage them to come to you with their issues. After all, a great bonding is a great way to bring your child closer to you!
