Parenting Teens: How Do You Know When Your Child Becomes a Teen?

The following is an excerpt from the book, Positive Discipline for Teenagers by Jane Nelsen and Lynn Lott.

You know you have a teenager when you hear yourself complaining, “She has no purpose. He won‘t help. She only cares about her friends. He is so self-centered. Her room is a mess. I can‘t trust him. This is out of control. I can‘t stand her hair, clothes, makeup, or music. He wastes his money. She resents me and idolizes rock stars. We fight about screen time constantly because my teen is always on his phone.”

Another sign that you have an adolescent is when you hear him complaining, “My parents treat me like a kid. They think I‘m having sex all the time. They butt in. They hate my friends. They give advice. They try to live my life for me. They are never satisfied. All they do is ask questions and control my life. Why can‘t they just leave me alone?”