By Humna Abdulmateen

Parenting teenagers is often complicated. With raging hormones and rapidly altering physiology, they experience various different emotions. While we as parents find it difficult to deal with them, the fact remains that they themselves are often unable to comprehend the changes they are going through.

1) Empathy:

it is important to be empathetic and try to make their transition smooth during puberty.
Their aggressive and sullen behaviour is often hurtful, but we, as parents, need to keep our ego aside. We should let them learn from real-life experiences. We should also be mindful of our reactions and reprimands. Do not keep your expectations very high. Soft speech and gentle reminders can often be
highly impactful. As Allah says in Surah Al-e-Imran (verse:159):

2) Communication:

Teens need privacy and space that should be respected. At the same time, effective communication is very crucial. Teens tend to become aloof and avoid socialising. Encourage them to mingle with close family members. Learn about their interests and hobbies and then try doing those things together, like running or walking together every evening. This will encourage them to open up to you about their problems and difficulties. Parents need to be their safe space without judgment. When Hazrat Yusuf (A.S) dreamt of 11 stars and a sun and moon bowing to him, he rushed to tell his father.
That is the level of trust and communication that needs to be fostered.

3) God-fearing:

Make them God conscious from a very young age. The fact that Allah SWT is closer to us than our jugular vein and that He is watching over us needs to be instilled in the children from a very young age. We can not hover over them all the time because that creates resentment. When we instill a sense of responsibility over them, they are better aware of being accountable to Allah(S.W.T) for every deed in their life.

4) Pray:

As parents, we should know that we can do the best in our capacity, but in the end, it is the Decree of Allah swt that prevails supreme. Not a leaf in this world moves without His knowledge or permission. Salah and Dua are our greatest weapons and shields. Always keep praying to Al Musta’an, for help and mercy. The Holy Quran has taught us numerous duas for our offspring. All the Prophets have made dua for their children. One of the du’as, as mentioned in Surah Furqan, is: