Working Through A Teen’s Porn Addiction: What Parents Can Do

By the age of 18, 62% of girls and 93% of boys are exposed to porn on the Internet. For some teens, this exposure turns into an addiction that can plague their lives and impact their relationships with friends and family. After discovering an addiction, as a parent your main focus is to help your child work through this issue; here are some of the things you can do:

Don't Treat It like a Plague

Whatever you do, don't treat the addition like a plague. Although your child is getting a lot older and making decisions on their own, they still see much of the world through your eyes. If you act like their addiction is something to be embarrassed about or something they should feel bad about, you can cause the child to take on a poor view of themselves.

Not only can reduced self-worth inhibit their ability to move past the addiction it can open the door to several other concerns, including depression. Let your child know it's important to work through the addiction, but that it is nothing to be ashamed of.

Keep It Private

In close-knit families, it is common practice to seek advice from other people. The nature of these exchanges is genuine, in that most parents are just looking for extra help. However, this innocent gesture can backfire on you. The more people you tell about the addiction, the easier it is for this information to be spread around and possibly even make its way back to your child.

If your child were to find out that you shared such an intimate and private piece of information, this would do major damage to your relationship in terms of trust. Keeps things private and look to a professional for help.

Encourage Family Time

There are a variety of reasons that cause teenagers to look at and become addicted to porn. However, many teenagers probably attribute boredom as a leading culprit. The child may not have had anything to do, spent some time online and stumbled on the wrong website.

A great thing you and the entire family can do is to encourage more family time. From movie nights to a family walk in the park to cooking together, these activities keep your child occupied and off the Internet, while also spending valuable time together.

Although you play a significant role in helping your child work through a pornography addiction, don't overlook the aide a professional can bring to the situation. Don't hesitate to reach out for help. For more information and assistance, go to sites like this. 

 


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