11 Effective Tips on Helping Your Teen Deal with Stress
Focusing on their strengths, making them do some physical activities, being a good listener, letting them do things which make them happy, encouraging food and sleeping habits and being available are effective ways to help your teen deal with stress.
To adults, childhood and teenage years may seem like an insouciant time to live. However, kids including teenagers experience stress. School, social life, adolescent changes, extra-curricular activities can all be overwhelming for a teen to handle. As a parent, there is no way you can shield your children from stress however you can create healthy methods to deal with stress and resolve everyday issues.
Teens can manage stress in unhealthy and healthy ways. Despite not talking about how they feel, they really want the support of their parents or loved ones to help them deal with stress. But, it is not always guaranteed for parents to always solve issues for a teen who feels stressed.
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11 Ways to Help Your Teen Deal with Stress
Here are some ideas to get you, as a parent, started:
Notice loudly
If you see your child being bothered about something then speak to your child about it first. They may end up hesitant to speak so do not rush. Take time to get to know the root problems since it fits the puzzle. This can be played out casually and hearing them out can make your child relieved. Always be sympathetic and take time to comprehend their complexities.
Focus on the strengths
Spend time with your teen to assess his/her strengths and opportunities and find different ways to carry out and hone those strengths. Whether if he/she is artistic, academically smart, spiritual etc., you can help them utilize their potential and put it for a good use and reduce their stress. By doing so, teens can manage their stress if they focus on their strengths.
Take part in physical activities
Physical activity is an option which is certainly a stress buster. You can take your teen out to perform activities which he/she likes. It can be yoga if your teen despises running or jogging. After trying out multiple activities, you can develop a good routine with them such as skateboarding, hiking, swimming etc. and stick with it.
Truth be told, the ideal types of physical activities are those which include a social element. You can pair up with your teen and other people who perform in the same activity. Regardless if they are into team sports or even rollerblading with a pair; you and your teen will have a fun time and should be consistent with it since exercise and social meetings calm the mind and rejuvenate the body.
Be a good listener
A majority of the teens feel too overwhelmed to describe each and every complicated feeling. Therefore, as they communicate with you, let them speak their heart out since bottling things can be stressful and too much for them to handle. As they begin to open up, they will stumble upon their own feelings and begin to understand about themselves a little better. Relating feelings to word enable teens to talk and develop their emotional awareness- where it is the capability to notice their own emotional beings. Teenagers who develop their emotional awareness levels are less likely to touch the ‘behavioural boiling point’. This is where powerful emotions pour out through their violent behaviours rather than speaking calmly.
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Reduce stress wherever possible
If there are specific situations which cause immense stress, check to see if there are possible solutions to reduce that cause of stress. Example, teens can feel pressure if there are frequent tests and exams, a lot of extra-curricular activities and many more. Placing limits as such cases is necessary since teens are not machines but human beings who are yet to be ripened to adulthood and should have energy and time for other important activities.
Just be there for them
It’s obvious when teens do not talk about their feeling since they feel either embarrassed to say or may think that they are alone to express it. However, sometimes it is okay to do so. You should let your children know that you are available when they do want to talk about something. There are times where teens do not want to talk but typically do not want to be left alone as well. Your teen will feel comfortable with you just being present with them wherein you give him/her company. Moreover, if you observe that your teen is stressed, being moody or just having a bad day but do not want to talk then you can start doing something together like cooking, going for a movie, walking or other calm activities. It is a blissful moment when you realize that your presence really matters.
Do things which make you happy
Apart from physical activities, let your teen find out different activities or hobbies which takes away their burdens for a period of time. This can be really simple such as watching funny videos, listening to music, drawing etc. Make time to do these things even during stressful or busy days since being serious all day can be a mental toll.
Read More: Anxiety Disorders in Teenagers: Treatments and Therapies
Being patient is the key
As a parent, it really is sad to see your teen being stressed or unhappy. However, try not be quick in solving every problem they have. Instead, focus on developing your child to be a great problem solver. This takes a lot of time where failure is certainly high but that does not matter. We all grow and learn through our failures. It is important to for a teen to cope with life’s hurdles, be communicative, to keep calm and try again from start.
Help your child brainstorm
If there’s seems to be a specific issue which causes the stress, sit down and start brainstorming together. Encourage your teen to develop certain ideas. You can take part in as well but do not spoon-feed them. This would lead to developing their confidence and lead your teen to speak out more. Even so, encourage ideas which are logical and add more it as needed. Ask them questions where it involves more of them coming up with the solutions.
Read More: Anxiety Disorders in Teenagers: Signs and Symptoms
Encourage sleep and eating habits
That’s right. With all that’s going on around teens, it is definitely important for teens to sleep well and eat well. Sleeping enables the body to be relaxed and energized for the next day hurdles. Having good sleep would lead to making great decisions and prioritize tasks. Moreover, in terms of food, eating a lot of junk food can poison the brain and lead to unhealthy lifestyles. This must reduce and should encourage more of healthy vegetables, fruits in their diet along with drinking lots of water.
Offer your opinions on the feelings you think your teen experiences
To demonstrate, you can say things like “That must have been unfair for you.”, “That sure is upsetting”, “No wonder you felt mad towards your teacher”. By doing this, it shows that you understand how your teen feels and this, in turn, encourages trust from your teen and will open up more to you. Being listened to and understood is a remarkable feeling for a teen and crucial during times of stress.
Read More: 11 Natural Remedies for Anxiety in Teenager
The final line
Parents cannot solve every issue which causes stress for their teens but being there for them, listening to their hurdles, trying out various activities will develop teens to cope with stresses in the near future by themselves.
