Living- (Un) Pain: A Gen Z Guide to Dealing with Stressed Parents When They Come Home
Living- (Un) Pain: Living in a dorm or condo alone until you get used to it, whenever you have to go back home you feel secretly depressed every time. Have you ever felt that going back home to see your parents has become a daunting task? After many teenagers have the freedom to live their lives as they please after graduating and starting work, whether living in a dorm or a condo, whenever an important festival comes around, they have to go back and face their family again. This feeling is not strange at all, and you may not be the only one who feels this way.
People these days may see a long holiday trip home as both a joy and a sorrow. On one hand, you are excited to go back and see your parents whom you haven’t seen for a long time, but on the other hand, you are worried that you will have to face a hundred questions about your life, including work, love, and future. On top of that, you will have to adjust to the สนใจสมัคร? คลิกที่นี่เพื่อเริ่มต้น rules of the house that you have been familiar with since childhood. This makes you feel uncomfortable now that your home is no longer a safe zone. So how do you deal with your parents and handle this situation? Let’s see.
For Gen Z teenagers, the sentences that make you feel down and annoyed every time you go home may be filled with the same old things, such as, “I barely see you when I get home. You’ve been holed up in your room.” “Why don’t you go to bed early? You’ve been doing things late at night and not taking care of your health. ” “Since you got home, you’ve only been talking to your friends on the phone and not talking to your parents.” “Don’t just sleep. Get up and do something useful.” “ What are you wearing? You’re so untidy, my child. ” “You’ve been eating unhealthy things lately. Eat a lot of the food your mother makes. Finish your plate.”
Before we dive into the maze of stress with these sentences, let’s look at it from another perspective. While we may feel uncomfortable being treated like a child, our parents may also feel lonely and need more time with us. They may not be used to having their children grow up and have their own lives yet. A study from the Journal of Marriage and Family suggests that open communication between parents and adult children increases relationship satisfaction for both parties. Therefore, adjusting our mindsets to understand each other’s perspectives is the key to solving this problem.
Instead of staying in your room all the time when you get home, try to create quality family time with your parents, children or siblings. For example, set a time to do activities together, such as watching your favorite movies together, cooking a special meal and eating it together as a family, or even doing fun activities around the house together. A study in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships found that spending quality time together helps strengthen family bonds and may even make your parents feel closer to you, so they don’t have to try to interfere in your life all the time.
However, for Gen Z, having some alone time and a safe zone at home is still important. Setting boundaries gently is a skill that needs to be practiced. Try to politely tell your parents about your need for space. For example, explain your feelings and why you need some alone time, instead of complaining or expressing your displeasure. This will help your parents understand your feelings without feeling attacked.
It is also important to strike a balance between me-time and family time. Plan your personal activities in advance, but don’t forget to make time for your family too. A study in the Journal of Happiness Studies showed that having a balance of me-time and family time increases life satisfaction, which means you can be happy with yourself and your family at the same time.
Technology can also be a great ally in maintaining family relationships. Chatting or video calling with your parents often while you are away from home can help them feel involved in your life. When you are back home, you don’t have to update them on everything at once, which makes the conversation more natural and less awkward. Another great way to open up about expectations is to talk to your parents about your expectations when you are home. Agree on house rules, check-ins, and chores. Setting mutual agreements can help reduce conflicts in the future.
Ultimately, one thing is always true, no matter how old we get, our parents will still love and care for us. In the eyes of parents, our children are still children that they want to protect. As for teenagers, don’t forget to give them time to adjust. Don’t expect everything to go smoothly right away. Adjustment takes time. Understand that both you and your parents need to learn new roles in the relationship. Patience and understanding will be key to getting through this time of change.
Knowing this, the next time you are about to go home for a visit, instead of feeling anxious, see it as an opportunity to reconnect with your family as an adult, not the little kid anymore. Who knows, you may find that going home is a more memorable and heartwarming experience.