How to Deal with 3 Common Parenting Problems of Teenagers

Parenting should come with an instruction manual, especially when dealing with teenagers. Just when a parent thinks they have tackled raising a child, along comes a teenager with their own set of problems. How we as parents deal with these challenges, require some creative thinking on our parts. Sometimes, a teenager can outsmart a parent, so be prepared!

Teenager Won't Take a Bath

Luckily, I have teenagers who would take a bath when asked. But a friend of mine had a teen who would not take until threatened. Sometimes creativity works. Here is a tip to get the teenager in your home to take a bath. If after prodding and begging has failed resort to this tactic. Whenever your teenager refuses to take a bath or a shower, show them that their clothing have decided to take a break from baths as well. Leave your child's clothes in the hamper and finally, they will get the message. When they ask why their clothes are not clean, tell them neither are they and you thought that the dirty clothes and your teen make great companions. My friend tried it and it worked. But if your teen already washes their own clothes, you might have to resort to begging.

Teen Won't Get up in the Morning

It is true that teenagers need lots of sleep, but life doesn't stop for a growing sleepy teen. They need to learn responsibility at some point for getting themselves up. When setting the alarm doesn't work, a parent has to think of other ways to get a teenager to get up. Think like a teenager and become current with technology. Chances are, your teens phone is on. Try letting your teen use their phone as an alarm clock. They will respond to the sound, as they are probably wired for their phone anyway. Another option is to text them in the morning. I also have called my teen on their cell phone to get them up. Seems to work. If there is no cell phone, good luck!

Teenager Won't Clean Room

As a parent, we all have walked into a teenager's room and had problems finding the teenager between and among the food, trash, clothes, homework, and the list goes on. Strange how they can keep a tidy list of songs on their iPod or have all their friends name in order on their cell phone, but can't pick up their rooms? If the usual tricks don't work, think creatively. This trick may sound juvenile, but it worked. I put my son on a point system. He earned points for cleaning his room and doing household chores. In return, the things he wanted to do were worth points. For example, he could earn 10 points for cleaning his room every day, five points for taking the trash out, and five points for doing dishes. So he could earn 20 points a day. When it came time to go to the football game on Friday or to a concert with friends, he had to have enough points to trade in. Football games were 80 points, school dances were 150, and hanging out with the guys was 65. You can work out your own point system and give it a try to see how it works for your teenager Through the point system, your teenager is learning that before one can have fun, one has to do work. Great lesson to learn early!

Hopefully you will parent the perfect teen. But until them, maybe a few of these parenting tips for your teen will help make both of your lives a bit easier. As a parent of a teen, remember to breath deep, because they won't be teens forever.