2010 October | Parenting Teens Blog

October 21, 2010

More Ways for Teens to Deal with Anger Issues

In the last post we covered the 5 step program for teens to deal with their anger issues. Some may find it extremely useful while other, although it’s still useful, will find it difficult to try and remain calm when anger hits them. That is why in this post we are going to discuss a few more ways that will help teens deal with anger.

Preventing anger is more than just trying to handle the situation when you get angry, there are things you can do to prevent that anger from ever coming to the surface. There are things you can do to stop the anger and anxiety building up inside you.

The first thing that relaxes our body is exercise. A simple jog or a walk in the park may do more good than you can imagine. Playing sports and being physically active is a great way to improve your mood and to ease the tension and let go of negative feelings, and this is a fact.

For some, not for everyone, music is a great way to relax and relieve the tension and anger feelings you may have. But it all depends on the type of music, as some types are known to decrease tension other may have the opposite effect, so be sure that you know the outcome of this exercise before you try it.

Another thing that may help you deal with anger is to write your thoughts down. You can keep a journal or write a blog, it doesn’t matter. When we share our feelings, even to a book that no one is going to read, it helps us recognize our feelings and emotions and helps us remove the negative aspect.

There is always Yoga, deep breathing, breathing exercises and stress management techniques that can help you control your emotions and keep you relaxed.

Talking about what is happening in your life, both good and bad, is always a great way to let go of stress and decrease the chances of getting angry.

There are great benefits to doing these things aside from preventing your anger issues. Yes, they will help you be cool and react differently to the situations that might lead you to anger. But they will also help you manage anger and every other emotional problem that you have, as well as anxiety and depression. These are simple universal techniques that can help each and every one of us relax and deal with our emotions better and more effective.

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October 20, 2010

5 Steps for Teens to Fight Anger

Filed under: Teen Help — Tags: anger management, dealing with anger, dealing with teen anger, fight anger, parenting teens, teen anger, teen anger management — admin @ 6:00 pm

We all feel anger, it’s just normal. Not feeling anger would mean that we are deprived of emotions, and that would not be much of a life. But anger is not good for us, it can be in some rare and weird situations, but they can account for 0.1% of all anger situations. That means that we have to deal with our anger and learn to control it, learn to fight our anger. The best way to manage your anger is to solve the problem that makes you feel angry, so here is a 5 step approach to fighting anger:

-   The first step is to identify the problem, what got you angry! Think about a few things, not only what got you angry, but also why did that anger you? Try to think of every angle that influenced your angry state.
-   Now the next step is to take a deep breathe and think about how you can handle this situation, that will give you the time to cool down and you may come up with a peaceful solution to the problem, which is our goal.
-   Don’t just go for the first solution that comes to mind, think of a few possible solutions and consider how each of them can play out. Try to go with the best possible solution, note that after this much thinking you will calm down considerately.
-   Once you think it through its time to act on your decision. Do what you found was the best thing to do after thinking it through and after noticing that you are calm enough to act without anger.
-   The last part is to see where you stand. You may think this unnecessary but this is the most important step as this is the step where you analyze all of your actions and what happened after them, this will help you rethink everything and find an even better solution for any possible future situation that may cause you to feel anger.

If it went through like you hoped for great, if it didn’t go back through all your steps and try to figure out what went wrong. It sounds simple, but when you are angry it is hard to remain calm and do these five steps, so remember, take a deep breath and start slow. You will get nowhere if you rush things and get even angrier.

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October 19, 2010

5 Steps for Teens to Fight Anxiety

Filed under: Anxiety Disorder — Tags: Anxiety Disorder, fighting anxiety, fighting teen anxiety, parenting teens, teen anxiety, Teen Anxiety Disorder — admin @ 6:21 pm

We all feel anxious from time to time, that is just part of life. The same goes for teens and teen anxiety, we deal with it, we learn to deal with it. If you don’t know how to deal with it here are 5 steps to help teens fight anxiety. Of course, we are talking about regular anxiety, not an anxiety disorder, which is something that needs to be treated. A professional treatment is the only way to fight teen anxiety disorder, but even in that case, the advices given below will help to some extent.

The first thing that will help teens and anyone else fight anxiety is relaxation. We need to learn to relax. When we talk about relaxation we are not talking about watching TV for a couple of hours or playing a video game. This can make your anxiety even worse. You should also avoid any stress enhancing substances like tobacco, alcohol or drugs. You need to relax your mind and body, to do that you can start with deep breathing. After deep breathing you can do some stretching exercises or yoga, that will greatly loosen up your body and your mind and it will help relieve stress and anxiety.

The second step of fighting anxiety is healthy living. You can’t feel good and relaxed and expect not to feel anxiety if you don’t lead a healthy life. You need proper sleep, proper eating and proper workout to maximize the chances of not being anxious.

A great way to fight anxiety is to be around friends and people that you love. Sharing some time together may help you take your mind of anxiety and relax much easier than any type of relaxation method or workout can. You can also talk to your friends about the things that are bothering you, we always feel better after sharing something. Who knows, maybe your friends have the same issues and you can help each other. Knowing that you are not alone with these feelings is a great help on its own.

For the next step you can always try the nature routine. Nature has the healing power of its own and it may help relieve anxiety, depression and may other emotional issues we have. Just taking a stroll or a jog in the park may do the trick. Also if you have a dog you can take him out for a walk. Animals are also a great way to relieve stress and anxiety.

The last part of fighting teen anxiety is to try and have a positive mindset. A positive mindset helps us deal with issues at hand and helps us chase away anxiety. People who are pessimists by nature are at greater risk of suffering from anxiety and depression than people with a positive mindset, keep that in mind and change the way you live and think and you can avoid having anxiety all together.

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October 18, 2010

5 Steps for Teens to Fight Depression

Filed under: Teen Depression — Tags: dealing with depression, dealing with teen depression, depression issues, fighting teen depression, parentin gteens, Teen Depression, teen depression issues — admin @ 5:44 pm

Teens are emotional and it is not uncommon for them to have depression issues. In fact there is a lot to learn about teen depression and how to deal with it. A simple fact is that depression doesn’t go away on its own, but it is also not hard to fight depression if you act early. Aside from getting outside help like a help of a professional therapist there are a few things you can do to fight depression. So let’s take a look at 5 steps for teens to fight depression.

The number one way to fight teen depression is exercising. I know, it’s hard to be motivated for a jog or a walk or gym workout when you are depressed, well that is why it’s called fighting depression. If you know that you are depressed you have to force a few healthy habits on yourself if you want to get out of that depressed state, and nothing works better than a jog in the park or letting some sweat out. You will feel much better after only a few days.

You have to eat properly when you are depressed. In most cases depression affects a person’s eating habits, some may lose their appetite and others may overeat. It is important that you try and keep a healthy diet at all times. If nothing works for you try eating plenty of fruit and light foods as that may get your mood back up. After all, you will need some extra energy for your exercise.

Thirds step is to reflect on your actions and on anything that may cause depression. Identifying the problem is half way to solving it. After all, even if you are not sure what the problem or the cause of depression was you should try talking to someone. That always has a therapeutic effect and it may put some things in perspective and make you feel better. In the end, you can always write a journal or a blog, which is a great way to fight depression.

Fourth step is to do something fun. Maybe there are some fun things in to do NYC if you live close. Like with the first step it is hard to go for something fun when you are depressed, but you should do it for the same reasons. You may feel like forcing yourself, but after you start doing something you love you will feel an immediate change in your mood.

The fifth step is to be patient. Being anxious and wanting to get out of depression only causes even more problems for your mental health and may worsen your feeling of depression. Once you have identified that you are dealing with depression you are in a great position to do something about it. Taking things slow is the smartest thing you should do.

In the end if nothing of this seems to be helping, but it should unless we are talking about major depression, you should seek professional counseling. There is nothing wrong with getting outside help, especially from a professional.

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October 17, 2010

Teens Dealing with Secondhand Smoke

Filed under: smoking — Tags: dealing with secondhand smoke, parenting teens, secondhand smoke, teen secondhand smoke — admin @ 5:03 pm

There are two sources of secondhand smoke, the smoke that comes from other smokers, the smoke they exhale and the smoke that comes from the end of the cigarette. The first one is called mainstream smoke and the second one is called sidestream smoke.

Although most teens think that secondhand smoke is harmless and also media propaganda used to lower the number of smokers and a way to influence them that is not the case. Secondhand smoke is really dangerous, as dangerous as smoking itself. Secondhand smoke contains various dangerous chemicals like ammonia, arsenic and even hydrogen cyanide, they are all toxic and all of them are related to cancer development.

Secondhand smoke can increase the risk of:

-    Bronchitis, pneumonia and other respiratory infections
-    Asthma, it can lead to development of asthma and can trigger dangerous attacks in people with asthma
-    Sore throat
-    Sneezing and sniffing
-    Coughing
-    Heart disease
-    And cancer

Like you can see these aren’t just effects that may occur after a few years, secondhand smoke has immediate effects on our health. Each one of us knows a smoker, that’s either a friend, or a family member or even a coworker when we get older. It’s impossible to isolate yourself completely from secondhand smoke, and that is the problem as even a short exposure can have an influence on our body, and that especially goes for teens and kids as they are still developing.

The same goes if you are a smoker, you are not only hurting yourself, making your health bad, having a smoker smell and wasting money, you are also putting other people in danger, which should be a great motivating to help you quit smoking. Just consider how much good it will do for your health, your wallet and your friends and family’s health if you quit smoking.

There are a few things that you can ask from the smokers you know in order to avoid secondhand smoke. The first and the most basic thing you can do is to ask them to smoke outside and as far away from you and other people. Even greater risks of secondhand smoke come to small children and pregnant women, so if you have some around there is no way you should let someone smoke near them. Also, ask them to wash their hands after smoking before they touch you, your little brother and sister and anyone else. That is even more important if you are in a car with a smoker, either ask him to not smoke while you are in the vehicle or don’t go for that ride.

Fortunately there are plenty of new laws that help us avoid secondhand smoke, but the bottom line is that your friends and family who smoke should understand and respect your health and keep their smoke away from you. If you let them know your concerns they should respect them. Not just that, it may also help them reconsider their unhealthy habit and even quit smoking in order to avoid jeopardizing your health as well.

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