24. My parents are difficult
Theme:
Relationships with family and community
Dear Auntie Stella
I am an 18-year-old boy and my problem is that my parents are interfering in my life. They keep telling me who I can have as my friends and warning me all the time about not having sex before marriage. They are so busy telling me what I can and cannot do that I don’t feel like I can ask them any questions or share my problems with them. My uncle lives very far away so I don’t have anyone older I can talk to and ask for advice. What can I do?
David
Talking points
- Do most teenagers you know get on well or badly with their parents?
- What about you? How do you get on with your mother and your father?
a) Do you find it easy to talk freely to them?
b) What difficulties are there between you and them?
c) Do you get on better with your father or your mother?
- How do your parents treat you? Can you think of any reasons for their behaviour? Do they treat boys and girls differently? If yes, why do you think they do this?
- What advice would you give to other teenagers on ways to get on better with difficult parents?
- Do you have other adults you can talk openly with? Who? What makes it easy for you to talk to them?
