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Am I being too harsh?
Mom_Me
#1 Posted : Saturday, October 29, 2011 11:36:01 PM(UTC)
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My teenage daughter has a very low self esteem ... I am not sure why ... I always thought she was a strong and confident person. I give her lots of hugs and tell her I am proud of her for her accomplishments etc ... I guess it doesn't mean so much when it's mom saying these things ... I'm biased (in her opinion). What is most important to her is how her peers view her and unfortunately there are many of her peers who tease and bully her :(

She has this desperate need to be well liked by all her peers and when she makes a new friend she comes on strong and I fear smothers them ... I think the friends she does have feel like she is just too much and too desperate ... she is like this because she is scared of losing them ... but she ends up pushing them away.

I feel for her ... I wish she wasn't having to deal with this ... I wish her self confidence was great and she didn't feel this constant need to feel accepted by her peers.

This said ... I don't know how to deal with her behavior without adding to the self esteem / feelings of worthlessness ... she just doesn't take her school work seriously ... it's been problematic in the past but never as bad as it has been this year ... she is in grade 10 now and just can't afford to take a no-care attitude. There is a real risk of her failing this year and in a way I am hoping she will ... the harm it will do her already low self esteem is a huge concern to me, but I think she needs a wake up call ... a reality slap ... she needs to start taking her schooling seriously. She doesn't keep her school books in any sort of order and I recently discovered a pile of school worksheets and notes with drawings, magazines, letters ... all in a pile; in no particular order; torn and dog-eared. Seriously ... how can she be surprised that she is not doing well. It's mainly two subjects that she is struggling with (actually failing) and I am not surprised (after my recent discovery). Surely at her age I shouldn't be policing or monitoring her school bag/books ... am I really expected to inspect her school bag and school books everyday and encourage her to stick in her worksheets ... and take pride in her school books and school work?
Tom
#2 Posted : Tuesday, November 01, 2011 12:32:56 PM(UTC)
T0M

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ummm.....

Perhaps a moot question, but where is this child's father, and why aren't you two working together to solve this problem?

Mom_Me
#3 Posted : Monday, November 14, 2011 2:52:28 PM(UTC)
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I am a single parent.
Tom
#4 Posted : Tuesday, November 15, 2011 2:03:51 PM(UTC)
T0M

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Ok, so there we have a start. Children can be nasty little creatures (never our own, though - of course!) - and so the children with both parents do their best to make the single-parent child feel inferior. Heck, when the mommy and daddy are not particularly happy together, their children are even MORE nasty to the single-parent children. It's not nice, but it's the way children behave in the absence of strong discipline and authority. Which qualities/powers/forces today's schools are conspicuous in their lack of...
For background, feel free to read the book "Lord of the Flies"....

Anyway, there's no point in trying to 'fix' that part of the equation - plenty of perfectly well-adjusted, happy children come from single-parent homes, and deal adequately with our enstupidated schools. It all depends on the child's personality and their position within the school society structure.

It would seem on the face of it that the real problem is your daughter's unrealistic expectations - for herself and yourself, and of what constitutes normality in her world.

However, the 'fix' is relatively easy, I would think.
I suggest that you find something that she enjoys doing - something like dancing, art, horseriding, ice-skating, athletics, windsurfing, swimming, line-dancing - ANYTHING that is outside of what she encounters at her school, and at which she is not already highly proficient. And then encourage her to pursue that activity.
She will make new friends - and being a newbie, she will be the one being cosseted and helped (for a change). When she has attained a certain level of proficiency, she will in turn be able to assist other newcomers - while still being intermediately skilled, as it were. She will become part of a group that is a different group to her school friends - and not feel the need to 'smother' others in order to belong or to show that she is part of the group.

With this will come a new level of confidence and maturity, and her overpowering desire to belong to the school clique will fade away as her behaviour at school returns to normality (or what passes for normality at schools nowadays!).

Mom_Me
#5 Posted : Tuesday, November 15, 2011 10:36:38 PM(UTC)
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Hi Tom,

Appreciate the response ... however, my daughter already does dancing and loves it ... she enjoys the classes and participating in all the festivals and competitions. I am there supporting her in the crowds at all these events ... I encourage her to just have fun with it because she gets really disappointed in herself if she doesn't place high enough to get a medal (not good for her self-esteem). She has already reached the stage where she assists other newcomers ... problem with that is she is branded "dance-teacher's pet". When the other dancers in the class are playing around and not showing the dance teacher the respect my daughter thinks they should ... well she gets angry and some of the other dancers don't like her because she is a "goody goody".

The other outside of school "activity" she enjoys is church and youth - she attends a youth group once a week and goes to church every Sunday where she has friends and enjoys spending time with them. Her desperate need to be liked by all extends to this part of her life as well though. The up side is this particular group of kids are not cruel and don't bully her so that's a plus.

I don't mean to sound like "been there, done that" ... maybe I'm doing some of the right things but in the wrong way?

Your suggestions/comments are most welcome. It's good to get an outside/objective perspective.

Thanks.
Tom
#6 Posted : Wednesday, November 16, 2011 2:44:58 PM(UTC)
T0M

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It's not easy, being a parent.
But it IS worth it.

It sounds like you're on the right track(s) - but perhaps the school-culture is more of a problem than you realise. Some schools have a really toxic culture.

The fact that she's not having problems in the church group points to her being accepted there, versus being objectified and mocked at school...

There is nothing wrong with being a goody-goody - or even a teacher's pet. SOMEBODY has to be the pet and/or the goody-goody...

Maybe you could look at changing schools?
Being unhappy at a school could really screw up a youngster's life - and lead them into doing all manner of things that they shouldn't.

Never discount the old adage: "A man is known by the company he keeps".
It's truer than most people realise - and people become like the people they associate with.
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