Adolescence is not an easy time. Any parent who has gone through it knows that it is a period of great change in which the bond that had been held until then seems to change at an accelerated rate. The mood swings in teens become common currency, whoever was extroverted and talkative can become shy, those who used to tell us all their secrets close the room door suspiciously and it is as if, suddenly, we were almost strangers to those young people who until very recently it was our chicks that we kissed over and over again.
Of course, this reality does not always happen, there are young people and mood swings in the adolescent stage They are frequent and are intimately linked to the growth process of our children.
Hormones, responsible for so much madness
The reasons? Well, it's simple: adolescence is the stage in which the maturation process deepens in all areas, from the physical to mental and sexual changes. There is a hormonal revolution that gives its first symptoms in puberty but grows at an accelerated pace in this stage, with the consequent internal change of adolescents.
Although it is common to hear parents complain about not knowing what to do and how to treat your teensIt is they who also suffer in their own flesh - some more consciously, others more unconsciously - this growth that marks a change in rules and outlook both in their social and family environment. Adolescents seek their place in the world and to achieve this, they somehow need to break with their parents, or at least establish a prudent distance so that their most authentic "self" can then be born. These changes provoke different emotions and reactions, ranging from the aforementioned physical distance to anger, anxiety, surprise or anguish.
Undoubtedly, adolescence implies a great challenge for parents, who must learn to hurt the child who until then was their child to accept and accompany the adolescent who is today and who, despite the reactions, still needs to.
From physical to emotional changes
The first thing that we notice as parents in front of our adolescent children are their physical changes, a process that has been occurring since the stage of puberty but accelerates in this period and is not always well received by young people. Bodies change and you have to adapt to them, being the hair growth and the appearance of secondary sexual characteristics the most notorious. The Boys' voices change and their testicles grow as they begin to ejaculate. In the case of women, the first period and breast growth are the most obvious signs.
But to this physical reality we must add the new recognition of one's own body and sexual arousal that until then was not present. Body image becomes very important and this impacts in many aspects, even in the groups to which they belong.
To the physical impact are added the emotional changes in teens, that now they become more aware of the world around them and the first concerns appear, the need for privacy and a new internal world that they must reconcile with the external one. Hence the sudden mood swings in teens, which range from anger and sadness to immediate happiness, extreme laughter, or irritability. All normal stage symptoms.
Changes in behavior
Lastly, during adolescence there are cognitive changes, little by little the young people begin to develop abstract thinking, which now allows them to observe different points of view and warn of the possible consequences of actions. It is a stage in which, somehow, the illusion of the perfect childhood is lost to recognize a more real world and environment, which causes changes in behavior, ranging from search for freedom to complete introspection, emotional ups and downs, sudden clutter, or more hours of sleep.
What to do in front of a teenage son?
Well, the answer is simple compared to teenage mood swings: show that love forever is present, support our children, be consistent with them and respect them like people but at the same time, mark the limits well, without violence and with a lot of dialogue. There is no better ally than the ability to rediscover them with balance to accompany them on this new journey.