No one said parenting teenagers was easy. Before you realize, your sweet little boy has become a tyrant, and he won’t listen to you. Your worst nightmares have come true – your boy is a teen.

Psychologist Nadine Kaslow, PhD from Emory University in Atlanta says, “It’s so hard for parents when this happens, but part of adolescence is about separating and individuating, and many kids need to reject their parents in order to find their own identities.”

While your adolescent’s behavior may seem abnormal, it could be very normal for the developmental stage he’s in right now. Just think back to the terrible twos or threes. You may have had a hard time then, but you knew it would pass because it was “just a stage.” Adolescence is also a stage.

How to Know When It’s More

While it’s normal for teens to act out, especially around their parents, there are some teenagers who cross the line. Their behavior puts them at risk. This is scary for parents and for good reason.

The National Institutes of Health reports accidents increase dramatically during early and late adolescence. Injuries leading to death is six times higher between the ages of 15 and 19. Teens between the ages of 12 and 20 drink 11% of all alcohol consumed in the United States, and there’s approximately 200,000 ER visits and 4,300 deaths from underage drinking. Drugs and crimes are also problems for teen boys, which comes along with lifelong consequences, if not death.

For these reasons, it’s important to k now when your teen’s behavior warrants extra help from a professional:

Decreased Academic Performance

Suddenly, your son’s grades have plummeted. Along with those decreased grades, he’s been trying to avoid homework and the school has contacted you about behavioral problems.

Change in Personality and Actions

When he’s home, he’s hiding out in his room. When he comes out, he could be happy one minute and ready to burn down the house with his words the next. When he gets in his rages, he has a hard time controlling himself, and sometimes, he can even be violent.

New Friends

He doesn’t hang out with the same people as he used to, but instead, he’s going out with kids who have a reputation of getting into trouble often. While he says that it’s just a rumor they are bad, you have your suspicions. This is especially true when he comes home after curfew and acts defensive when you question it.

Hurting Pets

Even though he’s always loved his dog, he’s not kicking him out of the way. They once cuddled on the bed together, but now he makes the dog sleep on the floor. Some teen boys will deliberately harm family pets or torture them.

Using Drugs, Alcohol, and Sex for a Release

It’s normal for teenagers to experiment by taking risks, but it becomes a problem when it becomes part of their life. Using drugs, alcohol, and an engaging in sexual relations to the point of opening themselves up to overdose or diseases is an alarming sign an intervention must take place.

Getting Help for Troubled Teens

Behavioral modification is part of many troubled teen boarding schools. By identifying the bad behaviors, understand why they are behaving that way, and learn how to replace them with good ones, is an effective way of getting troubled teens back on path to a successful future. Reach out to a troubled teen boy boarding school today to learn about their program can help.