9 Tips on How do you Motivate a Teen to Quit Smoking
9-tips on how do you motivate a teen to quit smoking. So, your kid is smoking. What do you do to help stop this? Your focus has to be on helping the young person develop a sense of self-worth while learning to communicate effectively. Effective and mature self-expression is a great stress control tool. Remember that it takes a lot of practice, especially if you are a teenager.
Here are 9 tips on How do you Motivate a Teen to Quit Smoking.
1. Don’t give up control of the home environment.
Don’t give him permission to smoke at home. Make it clear that even though he has made a decision to smoke that he has no right to jeopardize the health of his family.
Also, he has a right to a smoke-free environment at home as well, even though he may not see it as an advantage.
2. Don’t misread his attempts to quit.
He probably isn’t going to tell you that he is trying to quit; he may not have admitted this to himself.
One of the effects of quitting smoking is a tendency to talk a lot. So if your teen is suddenly more vocal, put the brakes on over-reacting to his verbiage. He needs to spit some stuff out. If he has been smoking to suppress his anger or his insecurity, then an attempt to quit may produce some irrational conversations on his part. If these conversations are not about smoking, so much the better. Don’t try to win any arguments. Listen and comment once.
3. Try to be up to the task of having a conversation with your teen.
Listen, and comment, but don’t insist that he agrees with you, and thank him for the input. It is appropriate to insist on the civil treatment of you, but be quick to forgive, and be careful not to inhibit further conversations. Also, be careful not to address him in an abusive manner (that would be a smoking trigger for sure.)
4. Be prepared for emotional outbursts.
A man who successfully quit smoking once stated, “It is easy to quit smoking. Just walk around on your hands and knees and bark like a dog for two weeks.”
5. Your teen knows you want her to quit. It isn’t going to happen immediately.
She may not even admit to herself that she wants to quit, but her attempts to quit at home will be difficult for her. Accept her efforts without judgement, and give positive feedback for progress in emotional development.
6. Figure out ways to let him know that he is appreciated and loved.
Did he make a good visit to his grandparents without being asked? Did you notice that he cleaned the garage? Did he get an A on a geography paper? Was he especially respectful during the visit of a needy neighbour? Does he help to care for the family dog?
7. Make sure that there are no demands that are going without attention.
Does your teen have enough money? Is there nutritious food available in the house? Does she have a time and place to study? Are her friends welcome at her home? Is she missing out on a coveted field trip? You cannot necessarily give her all that she wants, but you can tell her why not. You can listen to her suggestions and help her arrive at creative solutions and acceptable compromises.
8. Don’t bribe your teen to quit smoking.
Promising a new car will not decrease the stress associated with smoking. It will only increase it, especially if the attempt to quit fails. (It probably will fail since a new car doesn’t address the issues of stress control or weight loss, no matter how cool it makes you feel.) Then what?
9. Be in it for the long haul
Your teen’s smoking habit is unique, just as everyone’s smoking habit is unique. Your response to it must be unique as well. There are aspects that haven’t been mentioned, such as considering the fact that you may be a smoker as well. (The children of smokers often are smokers.) The way that you deal with the aspects of your child’s addiction will have a huge influence on whether or not he or she can successfully come to the correct conclusion; that is, the conclusion of the smoking habit.
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