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The Troubled Teen
6 Warning Signs to Watch For
By Teri Brown
Some parents don't even see it coming. They go about their daily business, thinking their teen is doing fine, and then – wham! – their teen throws them a curve ball. Maybe it's skipping school, smoking, partying, stealing or any one of the many things teens can do to get into trouble. While it's seemingly out of the blue, were there signs that something was going awry? Could parents have averted the trouble before it started?
Jean Lockwood of Ilion, N.Y., dealt with a seriously rebellious teen for several years. "Don't assume your child would never stray," she says. "Pay attention to the subtle signs. I can see a lot now in hindsight, but didn't take it seriously when I should have. Make sure you do your best to keep lines of communication open – that is what brought us through."
The trouble that teens can get into in today's culture is almost limitless, and the consequences can impact the rest of their lives. Dr. Patrick C. Friman, clinical psychologist and director of behavioral pediatrics and family services at Girls and Boys Town, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to the treatment and care of abused, abandoned and neglected girls and boys, says that, unfortunately, one of the most common consequences of negative teen behavior is quitting school. "Beyond arrest and/or drug problems, the most serious problem is dropping out of school or being expelled permanently," he says. "The adult without a high school degree lives in a shadowy world that is unsafe and unkind to those with virtue. Incomes are meager and supplemented with petty theft and drugs sales. The American dream remains completely out of reach."
Teens who are heading into trouble often don't see school as a stepping stone into a secure future. With their tendency to live totally in the present, many teens have difficulties correlating their current behavior as affecting the rest of their lives.