SC - Home Remedies for Teen Angst

[The Cheshire Cat]

Gwynydd wrote:

>For us, the cure to all problems (particularly of the physical kind) was
>"amputation at the neck" - sure puts a splinter into perspective!  My
>Grandma also had a "tear cup" which lurked in the back of a cupboard and
>whenever I was indulging in "crocodile tears" out it would come and I
>would be asked to cry into it because tears were good for nanna's
>complexion!
>
>Gwynydd - who has never found that the latter rememdy worked on her own
>daughter (perhaps you need to be a Grandma!)
>
Wow!!! you got off light.
My Father always used the threat of the Leather Strap (a huge, black affair
that loomed ominously when we were bad.)  He only every used it once on me,
but in that situation once was enough.
My Mother however brought us up in the 'little girls should be seen but not
heard.  Looking back on posts here and elsewhere I don't think it worked
very well:->
One memorable quote I heard on the matter was:

An uncontrollable child is like and uncontrollable horse.  He can be
controlled.  For this you need a wooden stick, an iron baton and a dagger.
If the stick does not subdue him, beat him with the iron,
If the iron doesn't work you might as well cut your losses and slit his throat.

That might be a little extreme.  I just give the little buggers a guilt
trip to make a jewish mother proud (no offence to any jewish mothers who
may be reading :->
It doesn't work all the time, but it at least subdues them a little.

Grandma's always sem to have more authority on matter like this.  In
general they are almost unfailingly kid and generous.  Mine was an angel
sent from heaven itself in this reguard.  This makes the change from
unfailingly approving to dissaproving more noticable and much more
distressing.

Teen angst is a tricky one.  They don't respond well to being treated like
children, but too young for responsibility.  (Listen to me hear, I'm only
six or so years out of teenagership myself! ;-)  Just treat em like adults.
Be nice to them when they're good and throw saucepans at them when they are
not.


- -Katerine (who was brought up this way. The voices in my head tell me that
I'm quite sane.  The twicthing doesn't mean a thing dammit! ;-)