There can be nothing more disheartening for a parent to see their teen struggling, lose their passion or clear sense of personality, and to have to watch them fight to find who they really are. It can be more frustrating when you feel powerless to help them, knowing that this is their own personal journey or sense of identity.
While you can’t directly control your teen or tell them what to do, there are many ways you can help them to find themselves again and relight their spark during darker times. You can suggest these to your teen or directly become involved with them alongside in order to offer company or support.
Help Them Find a Hobby They Love
Hobbies and pastimes are crucial for discovering new passions and honing them in an exciting way. Teens should always be able to find their spark through finding a pastime they really enjoy and can truly get stuck into. Keeping busy and finding enjoyment this way can also provide something for your teen to focus their mind on and avoid other distractions, providing a key mood boost.
Travel With Them
Travel is one way a person can truly discover more about themselves and go through emotional journeys as well as physical ones. Travel exposes people to new cultures, amazing sites, and offers new experiences. It can really help a person to reevaluate their own life or put their own circumstance in perspective.
If your teen is unable to travel with others or lacks the motivation to travel alone, you could always give a helping hand and some company. Plan for a family vacation, but try to think of new locations or new experiences that will get the best out of your teen. Perhaps it’s something adrenaline-fueled they’ve always wanted to do, or maybe it could be to a peaceful place which will offer your teen tranquility and relaxation in order to recharge.
Find Extra Support
You’re not alone as a parent if your teen is in need of help. There are many services out there available to help teens find themselves again. Services like residential treatment for teens are created to provide an uplifting environment for those teens who feel as though their spark has gone. Tailored help like this means that your teen can focus on finding themselves again and overcoming their problems in a compassionate environment – an environment that you can rest easy about, knowing that your teen is taken care of.
Find Like-Minded People
There’s nothing more uplifting than being able to share passions and ideas with somebody who is on the same page as you. Teens need friends and acquaintances who they can share their personality with and find their spark. If you think your teen is in need of new friends, or you happen to know someone who you believe would be the perfect fit for them, try to initiate circumstances which would help your teen to socialize with the right people.
You could also research community groups or classes which match your teen’s interests or hobbies and encourage them to attend or go with them.
Helping your teen relight their spark is all about helping them to embrace what makes them happy and providing the means for them to do just that.