Teenagers are a speciality of mine – I enjoy dealing with them . Maybe because I have teenagers of my own, I have huge sympathy for them and their parents. It’s a hard time of life.
To us, as parent, their life choices and rationale can be incomprehensible – they never listen to advice and take stupid risks.
There is a reason for this, and it is to do with brain development and which parts of the brain mature first. If you look at research it will tell you that the part of the brain that analyses risks and advises caution matures last – in your early twenties. Whilst the adrenalin fuelled, risk-taking and impetuous side of your brain is full-on for your teenage years. Exactly why mother nature organised it like that is a mystery, but it does mean that teenagers are often incapable of understanding consequences whilst being urged towards experimentation. In addition the hormones and chemicals flooding their body have been described as similar to the first few weeks of being in love. No wonder they go crazy!
So, in order to communicate with them we need to understand that they are at the mercy of impulse, chemicals and hormones, they are not thinking clearly and their model of the world is skewed. This is why it’s easier to deal with other people’s teenagers – like everyone else, I find my own frustrating, irritating and opinionated 🙂
The plus side is that they can be open minded,  optimistic and enthusiastic, and convinced they will set the world to rights. Well who knows, maybe they will.
Cognitive Hypnotherapy in Surrey