Normal Behavoir for 13 yo boy?
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Normal Behavoir for 13 yo boy?
| Sun, 08-20-2006 - 9:28pm |
Hi I'm a mom of 4 kids - dd 15, ds 13 , dd 11 and ds 6. This is about my ds who's just turned 13 for the most part he is a really good kid but . Lately he has been really trying hard not to get along with everyone. He yells and instigates trouble with his brother and sisters. Doesn't want to help around the house , yells at me or talks back or says "I hate you to us". We went through a rough patch with his sister but it wasn't as bad and she was different always knew it wasn't right. We just can't seem to get through to him about what is the right thing to do and why he suddenly started to act like this. Is this normal behavior or stage and does it last long because its going to drive us nuts.
Thank so much.
Debbie
Thank so much.
Debbie

It really is hard to say what is normal or abnormal for Teens to be honest with you but if you notice your son's personality is REALLY changing then
My son will be 13 in October and I think to a certain degree it is normal. At 13 the hormones are kicking in and they are experiencing a lot of changes. If you dh hasn't already, now is the time to have "the talk" with your son. If he has already talked to him, he may want to revisit some topics which your son may now be dealing with on a personal level.
I also agree that you need to find a way to reconnect with your son. Set some ground rules for respect and how he treats others, but be sure to empathize with him about how he's feeling about things. Give him over some more control (believe it or not, revisiting the old chore chart concept may actually be helpful in this situation as he just has to follow what's on a piece of paper, not be "told what to do").
Hope this helps
Stacy
I agree with ma2's post
I also found I was quick to throw out "you're 13 now so you SHOULD.... or SHOULD NOT"
What about the privileges of being 13?
It might be time to revisit the chore assignments-not let him off the hook but maybe hes ready for a change. Give him some ownership in the process now-'you could clean the litter box instead of take out the garbage if you prefer'
Mine were responsible for their own laundry from 7th grade on(my 18 yr old actually expressed appreciation for this last week BTW-knock me over with a feather)
And...give a privilege too-bump bedtime 30 min later or something
They are changing and I sometimes think they dig their heels in because we dont always make a concious decision to treat them differently-I think it kind of beats them to the punch if we acknowledge it
Hang in there-it gets better in 5-7 years ;)