Hey Pandas, Which Things Do You Think Today's Parents Must Know? (Closed)

I'm a teenager. I get treated as an adult a lot. So I should act like an adult and have the maturity of one. But the truth is, I'm just a child. I shouldn't need to be dealing with suicide or people who self harm.
Here’s the truth about being a teenager: NO ONE ACTUALLY LISTENS TO YOU EVER. Adults think you’re too old to be making mistakes and too young to take over their jobs. No one would just hand power over to a sixteen year-old, no matter how cool their prophecy or magical birthmark is.

Give your kid/s space when they need it and let them have freedoms of their baby but do👏 Not 👏 let 👏 them do something that they will seriously regret. From a teen here that has a disorder preventing me from truly understanding emotions I have seen the consequences of my friends actions because they were too emotional to listen to logic

Make sure your child gets the education they, and we as a society who pay for it, deserve. Too much time, money and hope wasted on incompetent 'schools' who nit-pick wardrobe and cram 'sports' down our throat instead of giving the young the tools they'll need to survive like basic math, grammer budgeting...

that video games ARE NOT A CURSE. they are as good for some of us as taking meds, guys. sure, filter the games they play, but let your kid play video games WITHOUT GUILT. man, its every freaking time, "look who's out of his cave" "gaming is bad for social skills" "gaming is a serious addiction" like, really guys, stop making your kids feel bad for doing something that does no harm to them! they aren't just games. for some of us, its just how we keep breathing. also, just don't talk about your kids behind their backs in general.

Just because the world looks bleak and doomed right now doesn't mean it's going to stay this way forever. That's what life is all about everywhere. There are tragedies, natural disasters, collapse of government power, economical hardships and injustices on humanity and environmental destruction throughout history. Nothing is for certain. Tell your kids you love them every day. Kiss and hug them. Make them the priority. Never allow anyone to make you feel guilty for giving them a place in the world. People will learn to accept them one day.

Kids are people. That’s the most important thing to remember.

don't belittle them when they bring up serious issues such as their own mental health. If they are depressed they need someone to talk to not someone telling them to stop being depressed.

Give your child the tools and knowledge to go as far as they can with their passions and talents. Insisting that they spend all their time preparing for "Plan B" teaches them how to fail at what they are truly good at and what they truly love to do. They will not thank you for that.

Don’t patronize or be condescending to children. They deserve to be shown the same respect. Rather than freak out yourself when they have a melt down in public. Wait for a break in it. Calmly ask if they are done. And take the time to tell them, you will be willing to speak with them when they calm down. You would be amazed by their response. (But then taking them down the candy or toy isle because it shaved a whole minute of your time, don’t wonder why). I have taken kids to the store, and giving a two year old the ability to reach those carrots and how that’s their job prevents melt downs. Or asking them, which can of (insert veggies of your choice here) keeps them busy and makes them feel like they are a part of the process.

How to make homemade baby formula. We thrived and survived.

Just be you. You are doing the best you can. Ignore all the social media posts and focus on your child. You’ve got this! On the flip side, never be afraid to ask for help. We’ve all been there!

Teen here. If I hand a parent my phone to show them something, it does not mean "keep scrolling." And when I take it back, it doesnt mean I have something to hide. You cant pause online games! There arare other people playing too! Real. People. Not cpus. You're just as addicted to technology as I am! I'm not some antisocial emo teen, I just dont like being on camera. It makes me super anxious and afraid. If I ask you something and you say no, and I ask you why, I'm not giving you attitude. Im simply asking why you said no. If you come home from work one day and I say "Hi mom/dad!" It doesnt mean I did anything wrong. Maybe I just wanna show my affection towards my own parents? If I'm in my room all day and I come downstairs to say hi, and you start saying "oh who is this? Did someone turn off the wifi?" Im just gonna go right back up the stairs. I was GOING to be social but your mocking just drives me away. If you ask me to come down and say hi to someone that knew me when o was a baby and try to get me to be super social I'm not going to be. Maybe they've known me, but I certainly dont remember someone I knew as an infant and never saw again until now. They're just gonna be a stranger to me. No. More. Teasing! It could be fine as a little kid but as a teenager it starts to actually hit hard. So please stop. Most teens today have enough self image issues to deal with already. Teens have their own mental issues they need to go through. You may think you're doing a good job parenting but please be mindful of your own kid's needs and feelings.

Let your kids more space! I was 6 year old, when I was going to school by public transport. I was going out in the afternoon to play with my than-friends for hours without my parents knowing exactly, where am I. It was just in late in 80s, early 90s..... so no like 70 years ago. So, all you kids growing up the same way, let that freedom for your kids. what you had!

Don't hit your kids. I don't care where you live, silly, just don't hit your kids. I don't care if YOUR parents hit you as a kid, don't hit your own. (keep in mind that when I say "hit", I don't mean being spanked every once in a while, I mean being beat. like with a belt. or getting punched or slapped.)

To school-aged kids, cool matters.

Your adult opinion on whether or not cool is important is irrelevant. Kids are mean little jerks who will pummel uncool kids. As parents, IT IS YOUR JOB to make sure that doesn't happen.

It's not a joke, it's not funny. You send your kid to school dressed in hemp, with some disgusting homemade oily peanut butter hippie sandwich, your kid is gonna get flogged.

A kid doesn't have to be spoiled, or the pretty mean girl, or some jock bully to be cool. Just don't make your kid a target with YOUR tastes or politics.

No third-grader is going to remember getting an atomic wedgie as some character-building exercise that brought him to Berkeley graduate school. He's going to remember his parents dressed him like a dork, sent him to school with a funky lunch and he spent school alone, with no friends, not invited to anything, with his books slammed out of his hands daily.

We know we take the scars of adolescence to our coffins. Don't be that parent who expects child minds to understand the adult bigger picture. No kid should have to wait for adulthood -- and getting out of your house -- for the fun to start.

Not for nothing, but you know exactly who you are if you do this.

That their little bundle of joy is a parasite from the time of conception in the womb. They will suck you dry, mentally, physically, spiritually and monetarily yet we would die to protect them at any given moment. Good luck with that

Oh where to begin..

You made a choice to have children. That makes them your responsibility. When you take them out in public, and they're being cranky, disruptive monsters, that means you actually have to deal with that behavior, and teach them how they are expected to behave in public. If they can't control themselves, then it's your responsibility to remove them from the situation, even if that means that you feel like you're being punished too. You love your children, and they may well be your "whole world" but to the rest of us, they're a choice that you made that is now ruining our day, night, outing, and you're the entitled person pretending it's acceptable. Children need guidance, boundaries and to understand that actions have consequences. Much better that your plans get ruined, and they cry their little eyes out a few times when they're young, then to be faced with that reality once they end up in handcuffs or the hospital.

Do not perpetuate the fantasy that they can do anything they want in life as long as they go to college and "try their best" or that the only path to financial security is through college. Following your dreams may sound romantic, but there's a lot of information you really need to know before you go down that path. How saturated is that job market and how long to graduates spend looking before finding a job, how much is the WORST salary you can expect to get in that field, and how long would it take to pay off your loans at the lowest salary. What's the work life balance like, and what' the turnover rate? Where is the best place to live to pursue that career, because if it's not where you are, or plan or want to be, that needs to be considered.

Encourage them to learn a trade skill instead of working retail. Aside from the fact that many people truly enjoy working with their hands, and being able to see, touch and smell that accomplishment, not every kid is built for, or even want to pursue a college education, nor can they afford to. Skilled labor jobs are, and have been desperate for workers for decades, Its really, really nice to have more than one plan, especially if your plan A leaves you $50K in debt with zero job prospects.

Talk to your kids about sex, and love and relationships. At best, their school might teach the mechanics of sex, but they don't touch on any of the complications that go along with it. Buy your sons condoms and put your daughters on birth control as soon as they hit puberty. A little awkwardness is much better than being a grandparent in your 30's/40's.

Your childhood, and what the world looked like throughout have no relevance in today's world. What worked for you, let alone your own parents has no value when it comes to preparing your kids for the world.

Handing them everything they want, isn't showering them with love. It's setting them up for disappointment. Life does not reward you just for showing up, and nothing worth having comes without some sort of struggle.

Explain yourself. Blind obedience might make your life easier now, but you can't expect children to learn anything if you don't explain why you're making them do something, why it's important. If you can't justify yourself, you don't earn respect, you just end up resented.

Don't let them on social media, don't let them get all their information from a single source (like social media) and teach them that the best way to defend your own views and opinions, is by listening to and understand the opposing views of others.

They are called kids. Not Sims. Please don't drown them in a pool without a ladder.

I'm writing this as a teen, and I need to say, let your kids do whatever they want, but not too dangerous. Do they want to play soccer all day long? Perfect. Do they want to try a cig? No. Give them things that they will like.

You do not and should not regulate and schedule every moment of your kids life - unless you want them to have crippling anxiety and the inability to think and do things for themselves... Your teaching moment may be interfering with what they are trying to learn. Back the f**k up....