There are no such parents who would like to see their child among smokers. What about those who are faced with the fact that their son or daughter is smoking?
Bans and scandals won't help
Unfortunately, if a teenager is caught smoking, then this is most likely not the first cigarette. That is, smoking has become a bad habit that harms his health. But it is very important for parents not to panic, they do not need to make scandals, do not push the child away from themselves with screams and threats.
The teenager does not start smoking out of a desire to spite his parents. The reason for smoking in adolescence is the desire to assert themselves, to be no worse than their peers, to demonstrate their independence and independence. But if a teenager realizes the need for self-affirmation and respect from others in such a rather destructive form, this is a signal of the presence of psychological problems. This means that the teenager was not understood and heard by the parents in time, his need for trust, respect and understanding remained not understood on their part. Of course, smoking, from the parents' point of view, is bad. But you can't just blame the child for everything. It is important to try to establish contact with him, to restore the broken trust. Whatever happens, the teenager should feel that you accept him for who he is, with his problems and even bad habits.
Intimate talk
As with all teenage issues, the universal recommendation is heart-to-heart talk. Try to understand what motives, problems, and feelings prompted your son or daughter to smoke. Do not scold your teenager, but do not hide that you are upset, and most importantly, that you care about your child's health and state of mind.
It is better if a conversation on such a complex topic will be conducted by the person in the family with whom the teenager has the most trusting and warm relations - it can be one of the parents, or grandfather, grandmother, aunt. Ask what kind of cigarettes he smokes, how often, how much a day, when and under what circumstances he first tried.
But if a teenager withdraws into himself, does not answer your questions, you should not forbid him to walk, communicate with friends, deprive him of pocket money. This will only provoke you to break the prohibitions, start smoking out of spite, out of a teenage sense of contradiction.
Raising by example
Try to encourage your teen to quit smoking and support them in this endeavor. Share your experience if you quit or quit smoking. Offer to quit together if you smoke. However, in the latter case, you must be able to really quit so that the teenager cannot accuse you of dishonesty and “double standards”.
In any case, remember that the teenager especially needs support and understanding of the family, a calm home environment with a trusting and respectful attitude of parents. And smoking a teenager is not a reason to make the environment unbearable because of constant lectures and scandals.
