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Teenagers

Parenting teenagers has its ups and downs. Get advice from Mumsnetters here.

Guidance, where am i going wrong

2 replies

1968Shell · 16/01/2019 10:50

Desperate, I feel like I'm losing control with my 16 year old. Nothing I do or say seems to make a difference. First problem was his phone, I found out that he is speaking with strangers via Instagram, he insists he knows that this particular person is a girl. The girl is asking him questions and lives a long way away. I told him that you do not know who this person is but he says look shes a girl, I told him that you cannot take this as correct and I wanted him to stop communicating with her and only with people he actually knows. He has numerous amount of porn on his phone (some really horrible). On boxing day I saw him speaking with this girl on the phone so confiscated his phone for a week explaining why. He took his punishment and was a a completely different child. We had no disrespect over this period. However, gave him his phone back and everything changed again. I have now put a time limit on his phone with my own security code so her can only be on social media etc for two hours a day, which I believe is ample. Secondly, he really wanted his bedroom doing. My husband however, said that he never looks after his bedroom so why should we spend hundreds of pounds. However, I persuaded my husband and we agreed if our son stripped his wall paper and cleared all the junk and bagged things up and got rid of rubbish we would do it. My son stripped his wallpaper and there it has stopped. I have been nagging him to sort out the rest of his bedroom but he does not seem to want to do it. Last night I said ok, I am not mentioning your bedroom again and when you have done what needs to be done, we will start decorating and buying your new furniture. (Not sure whether that was the right thing to do). I went into his bedroom last night and it was a complete tip, sweet wrappers, bottles clothes screwed up. When I mentioned it he laughed and said what do you expect its a boys bedroom. I lost it. I just threw everything from the sides onto the floor and said if you want to live in a tip so be it. Should I leave it being a tip or do I still nag him? He also works in a garage three days a week and goes to college two days a week. He is always five minutes late to work. I've explained that he should be there five minutes early not five minutes late and when he applies for a proper job, references will need to be supplied and one of the questions they will ask will be about time keeping. He does not care. I spend my whole time nagging. There are lots of other stuff going on also, mainly attitude. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

OP posts:
Kleinzeit · 16/01/2019 11:27

First of all, if your DS is going along to work and college, then you aren't doing too badly at all. Flowers

I think this is a time to really pick your battles. He's growing up and it's less and less about control any more, it's more about him making choices and feeling the consequences and you helping him pick up the pieces when he screws up (which he will) If there is lots of stuff going on then try to just home in on what really matters most, otherwise it's just an endless nag and none of it goes in. Try not to worry about attitude, it doesn't mean anything and the less you react to it the less of it you get. I would let the minor lateness go - if being five minutes late is a problem they will warn him about it. Time lmiting the phone sounds like a very good idea. You might be able to use increased phone acccess as a carrot. I dunno about the porn and the girl on Instagram, this wasn't an issue with my DS, maybe other parents can advise.

You told him his room would be done up if he stripped the walls and looked after it. He has stripped the walls. So really you have some choices. You can keep your word that when his room is tidy it will be decorated, and otherwise it's his choice to live in a shit-pit. You can also can offer to help him tidy his room - as in, do it together, not do it for him. You are not his servant. Or, you can put some proper consequences on. Basic hygiene means that food wrappers shouldn't be on the floor, you'll get mice. So I would do things like go in there in there with a bin-bag and everything on the floor etc goes in the bin-bag. Then he has a week to sort out the contents of the bin-bag and everything that's left in the bin-bag gets binned. For him to replace out of his own pocket. His choice. You can repeat this as needed.

He may be a teenage boy but you are not his servant and he needs to learn self-care. He's old enough to start cooking the occasional family meal and put the washing machine on himself, and you can stop doing his washing or cooking for him as well (he can make himself a cheese sandwich) if he's not doing his fair share of chores -- which includes sorting out his room now and again.

Think "ignore, stick and carrot". (Oh and compliments when he does anything helpful or useful, even if it was done under pressure) You can replace a lot of nagging that way!

1968Shell · 16/01/2019 13:38

Thank you for your message, it has certainly given me a lot of food for thought. After reading this, I wrote an email to my son, first telling him how much i love him. I told him I was extremely unhappy and sad that we spend so much of our time together nagging etc. I set out a few things and stated that at the end of the day it is he decision and in future I will give him guidance and it is up to him to decide whether he chooses to ignore. I also mentioned that instead of nagging and reacting to attitude, if he persists to treat me with the contempt he is showing that is fine but he will not be given favours such as picking him up and taking him places and that he can do his own ironing etc etc. I finished saying that if he wishes to sit down with me for a grown up chat to see how we can improve relationships at home, I am happy to do so. I also mentioned that if he is finding sorting his bedroom out which has 13 years of stuff, he only needs to ask. I mentioned that he would also have to learn the hard way as I will give initial guidance but he can then choose. I just got a message back say Love you Mum x We will see what happens. thank you

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