How to Help Your Teenage Daughter Manage Stress
Teenage girls are stressed. From peer pressure and fitting in, from magazine photos and body images, from school demands and social pressure--there are many mixed messages that leave girls overwhelmed. Here's how you can help your teenage daughter recognize and manage stress.
Instructions
Acknowledge stress. Girls don't recognize how stress contributes to their mood. They cry, they snap, they feel depressed. They're not sure why they feel so badly. They compare themselves to others and think they don't measure up. When your daughter has hit a rough spot, say: "You've got a lot going on" or "You're under a lot of pressure." Reminding her that her stress level is high will help her understand how to take care of herself. List stressors. Help your daughter identify all demands she's juggling. Even if the stressors are something she likes, such a busy social schedule, if she has no down time to unwind she will feel overloaded. Once you help her identify her stress, together you can find a solution. Encourage her to just be. Many girls report that they never get time to relax. They say that when they do vege out, their parents harp on them to get busy. If your daughter tells you that she's stressed out, believe her. If she's stressed, it means she needs comfort, reassurance and a pep talk. She needs an easy day to unwind, a day with out a schedule. Don't push her to take on more. Encourage her to go slow. Let her be. Consider allowing her a mental health day off from school. Help her express concerns and heartaches. While it might seem that she's being overly dramatic, remember that she's experiencing a range of disappointments, heartaches, worries and frustrations for the first time. She's growing up. Even if what she's saying doesn't make sense, don't poo-poo her. Don't offer a solution too quickly either. Sometimes a empathetic parent is all that a stressed-out daughter needs. Share a similar struggle. When you remember and share your own teenage struggles you normalize what your daughter is experiencing. She'll feel safe talking to you because you've been through stressful phases too. By acknowledging that her struggles are part of maturing, you help her to accept herself. Avoid comparison. Your daughter struggles to fit in with a peer group. Teenage girls compare themselves in every way to each other. It often seems as if everyone else is handling the daily pressures with no problem. From her point of view everyone else is cuter and has a better body. This is stressful. If your daughter is feeling stressed out, you can bet that she is comparing herself. Help her understand that every girl is unique. That's what makes us special. Help her to see her own beauty. Tell her she's pretty and smart. Help her discover her talents. Slow down for downtime. Teens are on the go almost 24/7. Even when they're doing nothing, they worry and think about what they should be doing. Let your daughter know that it's OK to slow down. A well-rounded teen needs exercise, healthy food, rest, friends and parental support. Let her sleep in. Let her lay around and mope. Take a walk together. Mope, move slowly, breathe fresh air, have a mother to daughter outing and she'll recover and feel chipper again.