Teenage Anger and how to deal with it
Teenage anger can be extremely hard for parents to live with and deal with. Whilst a level of emotional turmoil is unavoidable in teens as they learn to deal with hormones and the storm of emotions that come with them, extreme anger and ongoing anger is not normal and needs to be dealt with. If severe anger is not addressed it opens the way for a teen to turn to outside sources to get some reprieve from whatever is causing the anger. There is always a reason behind anger. Whether it is that the home environment isn’t suitable, perhaps they have been abused in some way and haven’t told anyone, drugs, peer pressure, school pressure – whatever it is it is important that it be uncovered and strategies put in place to manage it.
Teenagers are often loathe to speak to their parents about what is troubling them but it is important that they know that you are always there to listen to them WITHOUT JUDGMENT. The moment you begin to judge a teenager you will find them shutting down and no longer sharing what is going on. It is also important that teens know who they can safely turn to such as a school counsellor, relatives or a friend’s parents. They need to know that their anger isn’t going unnoticed and that you want to help them work through it but not that you are trying to strong arm them into doing what you want to do. You need to open the communication channels and let them take the action needed to communicate with you.
Once your teen has opened up with you then you can begin to explore what it is that is causing them to be so angry. From there you can decide together what course of action you need to take i.e. taking action to stop the cause but also undergoing counselling, therapy or an anger management course for teens to help them to deal with and manage their anger and learn to manage it going forward. Not only will this help them through their teenage years it will also set them up as a well balanced adult who has coping strategies in place when things don’t go to plan.
If you would like to discuss any issues you are having with your teens and/or how we can help you and them to learn how to co-exist harmoniously then please contact us at anytime.
