These are some of the hardest things about raising tweens and teens
Many parents tell you how hard it is to look after babies and youngsters but some forget or don’t realise how difficult it is to raise older children heading towards or in their teens. There are many things to worry about and things that you must teach your older child to ensure they stay on the right path but it isn’t easy and here are some of the hardest things about raising older children listed here to give you the heads up.
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- Mobile usage- Older children especially love their mobile phones and you may find it hard to get it out of their grasp for even a few minutes a day. You will constantly fret over their usage and wonder what exactly they do be doing all the time on their phone but there are ways you can supervise their activities and it is recommended you do so regularly.
- Internet and social media- Kids as they grow will be interested in the Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat to name a few but you quite rightly follow the rules and guidelines set out by the companies themselves to ensure your child’s safety at all times. The internet is a big place and anything your child posts will have a digital imprint in cyberspace and your child should know all about the issues online and about their personal safety.
- Drinking, solvent abuse and drugs- One of the biggest worries for parents is if your child gets into drinking, drugs or solvent abuse. As you cannot be with your child every single minute of every day you will need to learn to communicate with your child and be honest and open with one another.
- Trust and honesty- All children will lie about something through their older years and hopefully it will not become a common occurrence as trust and honesty are so important in dealing with your older child.
- Boyfriends and girlfriends- Boy or girl your child will eventually have a kiss or a cuddle with the opposite sex and this fills parents with dread and terror for obvious reasons.
- Puberty and “The Talk”- It isn’t easy having the talk with your child but it must be done to ensure your child understands puberty and dare I say it Sex! Of course, your child will probably run a mile, hate you for bringing it up and swear that they get it since they know from school but you must do it yourself too.
- Cost of education- Secondary school isn’t cheap but it is only warming up to the later years of college fees and this will worry most parents.
- Exam stress- When your child sits their big exams you too will feel every ounce of their worry and you may even have trouble sleeping or eating with the stress. All children are different and some will fly through them in a whisper while others will panic and cause mayhem at home.
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Teaching your kid to be self-sufficient- You raise your kids and look after them but you worry about the future and how well able they are going to be able to look after themselves in college. It will help if you already taught your kid how to cook and clean for themselves but either way the future is a worry and it always will be.
