All opinions are mine and mine alone.
Every milestone in a teenager’s life comes with a certain amount of anxiety for the parents. Sending them off to college is definitely a bittersweet experience, seeing them graduate from high school makes you both proud and nostalgic, while helping them to achieve their driver’s license can be a bit frightening but nonetheless heartwarming.
Unfortunately, that proud moment of seeing them finally obtain their license is filled with a whole set of other worries as well. Young adults and teenagers are, as you know, a bit more reckless and more likely to end up in an accident – not to mention the fact that they’re also inexperienced drivers.
If your teenager is about to get their driver’s license and you need a bit of reassurance, you’ve come to the right place. Here is a handful of ways to feel a bit calmer and trust that your teenager knows what they’re doing for once.
First: Talk about distracted driving
If anything is going to send your anxiety levels through the roof, it’s watching your teen pick up his or her phone while driving. Or even just turning the radio on its fullest, dancing behind the steering wheel, and singing to their heart’s content – this kind of stuff is for experienced drivers and not for those still trying to become a part of the official traffic.
The trick is, of course, to learn how you can still keep your attention on the road and not let all of these little things take your mind off what’s important. As a teenager, this is definitely a bit harder and it’s no wonder that distracted driving is the main cause of accidents among young adults.
Talking to them about this, on the other hand, is an important part of being aware of the dangers and mature enough to realize what may cause them to become distracted. Let them know that it’s alright to tell their friends in the back seat to calm down a little and that pulling over is way better than experiencing an accident.
Have the talk sooner rather than later and feel a bit more comfortable the next time your teen grabs the car keys and heads out the door.
Next: Remember to set a good example
If you’d like to feel calm and settled when knowing that your teen is on the road, you just need to think about the kind of teachers he or she has had. You’re one of them in addition to their regular driving instructor, you know, and if you consider yourself a careful driver, it’s a bit more likely that they’ll be one as well.
Focus on safe driving, above all, and remind yourself that you can positively influence your kid’s behaviour behind the steering wheel.
In other words, if you’re often glancing over at your phone while driving or making phone calls when you should have your attention on the road, you can feel quite confident that your teenager will do the same. It doesn’t really matter if you tell them not to do it either; just like you, they’ll find an opportunity for it when they think nobody’s looking.
Go on a few driving rounds together once in a while as well, by the way, just so that you can have a look at their driving for yourself. They might surprise you, in a good way, and you won’t have to worry that much anymore.
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