Damned if you do, damned if you don’t – keeping stupid teens less stupid
A couple of weeks ago, I took the time to discuss cell phones, the transmission of x-rated images and the severity of such an act with my own teens.
I swear my kids don’t believe me. They believe I’m full of hot air. I do think my own two boys are fearful enough of my “going apeshit on their ass without warning” episodes that they would avoid such actions at all cost.
Since we had our discussion over the stupid girl in Ohio that sent the video of herself that’s being called “child porn” – there’s been the revelation that cell phone porn is growing in the Michiana region. This is awfully close to home folks! I’m in that “iana” part of that equation.
It has been suggested that the reason my kids may not be struggling with ‘normal teen behavior’ is because they have been taking Zoloft for a few years. They believe the chemical impact being provided by Zoloft is providing just enough “sexual side affect” that the boys aren’t suffering the full affect of hormonal changes most teens do.
Now I’m wondering if I’m doing my kids an injustice because we’re not dealing with “natural” issues – however, in speaking with my kids, I asked them what they thought about the obvious confusion, anxiety and blatant stupidity of their friends. They both agreed they would rather have the chemical assistance to make wiser decisions than to have to go through some of the stuff their friends are.
We have become privy to information that someone we know that is also 14-years-old may have transmitted an x-rated photo of themselves to someone at school. The mother part of me wants to step in and report the stupid act while another part of me wants to curl up in a shell and hide from the horrible world this is becoming.
When I asked my kids if they’d ever received any such images, they informed me they had been asked if they wanted to see a pic a couple of times of different people – but they declined the opportunity and told the kids how stupid what they were offering was.
I don’t want to just settle with an explanation that “boys will be boys” and they’re going to look at porn in any way shape or form. I want to lock them up, shelter them from this horrible world and have them see what the consequences could be for getting involved with stupid teens making stupid decisions.
Now my questions for you is:
1. If you heard a friend of your kids had taken a photo of themselves and sent it over their phone, what would you do?
2. Would you be concerned about the possibility that the medication your kids are on may be causing them to have an “unnatural” approach to the world and the issues they encounter?
Image: stock.xchng
1. My kids don;t have and wont have cell phones.
2. Yes. Because eventually they will have to deal with it all.
See, I can be succinct.
Oh shoot, my soon-to-be 16 year old little sister lives in Michiana and is very connected to her cellphone. Time to have a nice big-sisterly talk. Because I’m “Sis” not “Mom” or “Dad,” I think she listens to me more.
As for #2, that’s something I’ve debated for a while. I think my sister has ADHD, but her parents (she’s actually a half-sister) don’t believe in ADHD, they think she just needs to try harder. She’s got great potential, she just has a hard time staying on one track of anything at a time. I do believe that if she got a little treatment, she would do so much better.
I have already had to deal with this situation. I said, get it out of your phone, do not send anything you would not want your gma to see on that phone, because it WILL be passed around. In our case, it was not x-rated, but it was embarrassing enough. It won’t happen again. I am certain of that – she is horrified.
I would figure out a way to let the parents know. I think kids don’t think ahead, they don’t think about who else is going to see something. They have no concept of the future and the further consequences down the line. Parents who believe their kids DO get it, either don’t know teenagers, have teenagers who are good at faking it, or are fooling themselves. Teens brains just aren’t finished developing yet – they WILL get it eventually. In the meantime, we have to protect them.
The medication, I’m not sure about. I think anti-depressants are a short term situation, right? The kids take them to get help, then when things are “fixed,” they stop? My daughter has found it necessary to take anti-depressants off and on. Currently she is beginning a new one. I’m more worried about her hurting herself or feeling hopeless than I am about her hormonal urges right now. She won’t need this medicine forever. I hope.
Good luck. This kind of thing is much tougher than what I went through as a teen back in the 80s.
Homeschooling is sounding so good right now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My little girl is in kindergarten at a public school. We’ll probably have to pull her out to homeschool or put her in a private Christian school within the next few years.
Okay, what are you doing? Purposely creating your kids so they are the unpopular dorks who are gay and teacher’s pets? Part of high school is this experience and to learn.