The topic of teen rebellion usually triggers some kind of emotional response. It can ignite fear in the hearts of parents who have children on the brink of adolescence; it can prompt both defensiveness and despair in the hearts of parents struggling through the teen years; and it can inspire a sigh of relief for parents who now have adult children. Whether your teen is opposing your authority or God's, rebellion is never easy to deal with.Read entire article.
When children are younger parents watch what they read. They may even read everything their child reads to make sure the material is appropriate.
As they grow adults may decide that their teen is old enough to make their own choices when it comes to reading. Perhaps parents of teens should reconsider.
...for many girls in similar positions, Twilight was not just light reading, it was a way of life. They obeyed this book as if it were their Bible. They viewed Edward Cullen as their perfect man, and put themselves in the place of Bella Swan, the leading lady.-How Far is Too Far? Navigating the World of Young Adult Fiction by Beth Greaves
I began to worry about girls I knew nothing about. I feared the reality of the world would be an unequivocal shock to them. Teen pregnancy statistics are alarmingly high. While I am not necessarily interested in discussing the pros and cons of abstinence, I cannot help but feel that books such as Meyer’s promote a dangerous naïveté. They prepare many girls for a world they will never know.
Novels such as Twilight explore issues such as teenage relationships and sexuality by not exploring them at all. This don’t-ask-don’t-tell policy provides many students with skewed and narrow views of their society.
How can they deal with hormones and deep emotions if such things are implied to be almost taboo? It is a dark world that we live in, and while I do not believe that teenagers should either be exposed to or protected completely from this, I believe that it is crucial to prepare them.
In many ways, American teens have never had it tougher. Perhaps a surprising statement, given the United States' obvious affluence compared to the rest of the world.
If you're a parent today, you know what I mean. Social pressures are more pervasive and destructive than ever before in American history. Parents often feel helpless to equip their teens with the tools to navigate – and steer clear – of harmful relationships, attitudes and behaviors.
Ideally, the process of equipping our kids to live and thrive in an often Christian-hostile world begins as soon as they are born. In fact, parents are the single most important developmental influence in a child's life, apart from the Holy Spirit himself.
But even if time has slipped away, and your teenager seems out of reach, you can begin to lay building blocks to help your teen grow to maturity in Christ and make a positive impact on his or her world. Love, commitment, self-discipline, perseverance and a lot of prayer are required, but you can do it.
Assisting your teen in forging a strong, positive identity is one way to help her form convictions based on truth, and then stand firm in them regardless of what everyone else does.
Wilderness therapy programs are often confused with wilderness experience programs. They are extremely different in that wilderness therapy programs treat kids with a variety of behavioral problems, drug and alcohol abuse issues, violent behaviors, truancy, theft, and many more reasons.Statistics show that most of the teens in these programs are boys between 13 and 15 years of age. However, there are wilderness therapy programs that take in girls and those of all different ages. There are many programs though that are specifically teen boys.Most wilderness therapy programs offer the same process for treatment. More often than not there is the first phase of getting all of the boys clean of drugs and alcohol physically. Most have staff that are trained to deal with withdrawals and other detoxification issues that may arise.The second phase is a personal accountability as well as social accountability phase. Generally speaking there will be team building activities where the teens are forced to work together as a group to succeed. During this phase it is crucial to let natural consequences fall into place. If a teen decides not to do a necessary step they may have natural consequences to endure. For instance, if they are in charge of trash items after mealtime and neglect to do their job they may have to deal with wild animals coming into camp. Not only will this scare them but they will take a bit of heat from their peers. This is good in that it helps them realize that most things are not just about them but their choices affect those around them.In the third phase the teens are taught how to implement what they learned at home and learn coping skills to keep from the temptation of drugs and alcohol use and other at risk behaviors. Some wilderness therapy programs are only three weeks and for those with ongoing or long term addiction problems or long term behavior problems this may not be long enough for them to really learn all that they need to learn for re-entering their home life and social circle at home. All wilderness therapy time frames are different.These programs are becoming recognized as a great alternative to traditional mental health treatment facilities and they are also talked up because most are much more affordable. It is nice that there are options for family. It is hard to find hard data concerning wilderness therapy programs because they are still quite new and only a limited number of teens get the experience. At last official count there were less than 40 wilderness therapy programs in the United States.
Cell phones can and are a benefit to those who use them responsibly. But more and more teens and adults are using them without the thought of others.
The teen who sends text messages at the dinner table or the adult who talks on the phone during a meeting send an unwritten message to those around him/her... "No one is as important as me."
Our society has become a "me society" and the very things that can keep us connected, are driving us apart. Families who sit around and text and play games but never talk are missing out on family time.
The teens who text instead of talk are missing out on learning how to socially interact face-to-face. When those same teens are in the workforce they will lack the skills necessary to succeed.
An article from wausaudailyherald.com sums it up best:
The reason we have social norms in the first place is simple: They govern how we interact with one another, and they put into place some of the widely accepted rules of consideration for our fellows. Those same considerations ought to apply in our digital world of constant connection. There are times when all of us, president or teenager, simply need to put away our phones.Read entire article here.
There are many grant programs for troubled children. These are social welfare programs where social services and juvenile authorities team up with local business enterprises or institutions to help youth work for income and learn to live on their own.
Grant programs are State sponsored or sponsored by not for profit groups. Troubled youth are enrolled in the program and given work background and academic training. They are taught things to develop a sense of purpose and self esteem. Marketing, sales, gardening and local community services are some of the many work programs that take in troubled teens to teach them life skills. Troubled adolescents learn to cope with real life work issues and give up their negative thought and habits. Since the work is paid for, these young men and women have an added incentive to join the program. They learn the importance of living a dignified disciplined lifestyle and the value of becoming well adjusted adults with successful careers. These programs enroll teenagers for work after school hours so that their education is not neglected.
When it comes to teen suicide, Bedford County resident Tina Henderson is frustrated with a lack of discussion about the third-highest cause of death for American youths.
"No one wants to talk about it," Henderson said. "I think because there's a stigma attached to it. If your son or daughter dies from an accident or cancer or some other disease, it's OK. But if they take their own life, there must be something wrong with your family or with them."
This month marks the anniversary of her son Eric's passing. Eric died by suicide three weeks before his 14th birthday.
She said rumors began swirling almost immediately.
"People care too much about what other people say," she said. "People look at you differently or at least you feel like they do after you have someone commit suicide."
Henderson spent years traveling the country on behalf of the Bedford County chapter of the Yellow Ribbon International Suicide Prevention Program, whose singular goal is to prevent more deaths like Eric's.
While she was well-received in places as far away as Wisconsin and in other counties across the state, Henderson couldn't get any interest locally. The program dispenses cards that people who are thinking about suicide can hand to someone to get them help, when they can't speak about the issue.
"We were on national TV talking about it, but we can't talk about it here," Henderson said.
She has since closed the local chapter, although she still comes across suicide attempts through her work in an emergency room. Her co-workers know to pass those patients to Henderson.
"I want to talk to them," she said. "I'm just trying to tell them it's OK to ask for help."
The Yellow Ribbon program was founded after the 1994 death by suicide of 17-year-old Mike Emme. Despite pulling another teenage friend out of suicidal thoughts just days before, Mike killed himself after a difficult break-up.
More than half of the 180 chapters around the world were formed by family members of suicide victims.
-By Wendy McCardle, www.altoonamirror.com
