To a parent, the one truly horrible thing that can happen to his or her son is him straying down onto a wrong path. Any parent knows that at some point, teenagers will assert his or her independence, but some struggle with this more than others. They act out in extreme, destructive ways: abuse drugs and alcohol, join gangs, run away from home, commit crimes, threaten or attempt suicide, or behave in ways that usually jeopardize and will affect their later lives.
It’s during these times that you need to hold his hand more than ever.
Helping your troubled son back towards the right path is never an easy case, but there is always a way. The first big step for you and your family is to commit to the cause unreservedly.
Here are some of the best ways you can do to help your troubled teenage son.
Forge stronger family ties
A supportive and loving home environment is always and will always be the best treatment. Simply by establishing family routines: having daily meals together, family outings to places such as the beach, park, celebrating birthdays and special occasions together will help tie a family together.
If your son has scored A’s for his examinations, its time for a dinner treat for the whole family. If he cleaned out the garage like you told him to, it’s also time for that dinner treat. Acknowledge all the positive actions and show appreciation to his success. Happiness is also greater when successes are shared with the entire family.
With the foundation of strong relationships, it is easier to reach out and give attention and support to your son when needed.
Impose a strict discipline in the household
Giving a fair and unvarying discipline will help give your son a sense of accountability for his actions—a life value that is so often overlooked. Take note, in all aspects of life, accountability is one of the best deterrents for bad decision making, and a teenager instilled with a good sense of accountability will refrain from destructive behavior simply because he knows what the consequences of his actions will be.
Keep him involved; give him a taste of responsibility
Keeping him busy, give him something to do. To become a responsible adult, your son needs to learn to fulfill obligations and expectations, however minor they are. It could be washing the plates, doing the laundry, or taking out the trash once a week to tutoring and helping his brother or sister with their schoolwork and getting for themselves good grades.
