Teach Your Teens About Impulse Control

When toddlers throw tantrums, they rely on their parents to soothe and teach them that tantrums are unacceptable. But when a teen loses control, society is not always so understanding. We expect teenagers to calm themselves down because we hold them to a higher standard of self-control.

One of the most important skills you can teach your teenage son or daughter is self-control. It is truly a survival skill. Adults who can master their own emotions and responses often enjoy successful professional and personal relationships and do not end up taking court-ordered classes online.

Court-ordered classes say that learning self-control often grows out of conflict. The next time you find yourself in a disagreement with your teen, take solace in the fact that it can be a teaching moment. Children have to learn that negative, aggressive, and dishonest behaviors are unacceptable. They do tend to model their behavior after your behavior, so if you become agitated and angry while talking with or disciplining your teen, he or she will reciprocate.

Many court-ordered classes online teach that when teens respond to parental efforts to correct their behavior by "blowing up" and refusing to do what is being asked, they need to be taught self-control. By teaching self-control, parents can help their children identify their feelings correctly, learn appropriate ways to express them, and ultimately accept that they do not always get their own way.