A young boy when asked how he felt on his thirteenth birthday, said, "But for the reputation everything else is fine." Teenage brings problems with it for the child and the parents. It is a trying time for all concerned. But, with a better understanding of the situation, you can transform the teenage years of your child into joyful years rather than reel under stress and cause tension all around.



Here area few tips to do it:

Deal with situations as they appear. Don't worry unnecessarily about what all can go wrong. Learn to trust your child but be there for him when he needs you. Accept the fact that parents and books can teach only so much; the rest they will learn from life's experiences.

Don't stress, there are some easy and simple ways to make the teenage growing years as painless as possible and provide the positive environment your teen needs to become all they can be as an adult.

Let them know you don't see them as a child any more. Many teenagers feel that their parents still view them as children. So they go out of their way to show how adult they are.

Make a few positive changes in the house. For instance, if children and adults eat separately during holidays, set a place for your teen at the adult table. And extend curfew, or include them in more adult conversations.

This way your child can feel that while he or she is not yet an adult, they are not being viewed as a child, either. This bit of parenting advice can head off child behavior and child discipline problems.

A good way of giving your child the perception that you treat him as an adult is to let your teenager have more decision making power. Let your teen make more child behavior decisions. Let them know you are available for guidance but that the decision is theirs to make. Taking decisions helps them take responsibility. For example, let your teen decide whether he wants to go on a school trip or not; and support his decision.

If your teen has reached the age where he or she is old enough to work, talk to them about getting a part time job. Make sure he or she understands that school is the most important thing he or she is doing in his or her life but encourage him or her to gain some financial freedom. If he or she is working, have him or her be responsible for purchasing school supplies.

As a parent, it's your responsibility to start stepping back and letting your child slowly sit on the driver's seat. It helps them learn that the real world is probably a lot different than what was imagined as a child.