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Help for parents of troubled teens

If you are on this website, then chances are that you’ ve had problems with your teenager and are looking for help. But you probably wonder if your child truly needs some type of intervention, or if it’ s just a “ phase” that they are going through, here are some warning signs that your child is facing bigger problems than you might have thought:

Isolation:

An adolescent’ s life is a very social one. If your teen tends to prefer his own company to that of his peers, there may be a problem. As with all of these symptoms, communication with your teen is of capital importance, find out why your teen prefers to keep to themselves.

Peer Groups:

This extends to friends that you haven’ t met. If a teen is concealing his friends from you, or is ashamed/anxious to bring them over for you to meet, this may be a cause of concern. Other warning signs may be an abrupt change in “ look” in a teenager.

Hiding:

When your child is hiding things from you, not just their diary or a text message from her boyfriend, but significant events in their life that deals with her welfare. If your teen is habitually late, or misses certain appointments regularly, then it might be a good idea to find out if there is a problem.

School:

When grades suddenly plummet, or truancies and tardies are becoming rampant, then there may be a problem that you need to discuss with your teen. Drugs and Alcohol: These are dead giveaways that there is something amiss. If you find that your child has been habitually abusing a substance, then take time to speak with them if possible. Help discover the problem, and contact a professional to help you plan out a solution.

Violence: In our observations, any kind of violence, whether it is to others or the teenagers themselves, is a sign of another problem; bullying, cutting, or any other violent action is something that should be a cause for concern.

Self Image:

Extreme weight gain or loss can be a sign of unseen troubles, also any kind of indication of a distorted body image, such as thinking that they are too fat when they are perfectly healthy, or even too skinny. Things of this nature can be indicators that your youth needs help.

Nerves:

When the trials of adolescence seem impossible to your child, and they are prone to nervous breakdowns, this can also be a sign that your child needs help.

Moods:

If your teen has a tendency to swing to violent extremes of moods, such as smiling one moment and screaming the next. This may be an indicator that your youth is struggling with things that they need help with. These are all different indicators, and of course, with every situation it depends on the individual. While some teens might be able to figure out their issues with some help from you, the parent or friend, others could use the additional help of professional services to deal with these pressures. Consider your child’ s situation and make a decision with as much information as you can.

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