Muuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuum!

I had to laugh the other day. I was summoned by my sons to watch the tele programme E=mc², a French popular science show on M6 which was supposed to explain adolescence to parents and how to cope with the stroppy little buggers.

My eldest thought I could do with learning a few things. HAHA, it just confirmed everything I've been doing, and supported the stuff I insist on but he objects to. As I wasn't in a laughing mood on Sunday evening, I just watched it, thought thoughts and discussed it with him the next day.

It was saying:

• ados need 9hrs sleep
• melatonin which is needed to induce sleep doesn't come into effect in ados before about 1am as opposed to 11pm in adults which is why they suffer a 2-hr time lag and need to sleep in at the weekend to make up for the lost sleep.
• they have immature brains resulting in impetuous behaviour and recklessness
• they have boundless energy
• parents should stand firm and not give in during arguments
• ados should communicate with parents more to instil trust
• ados should not be on the computer just before bed as the luminous screen inhibits melatonin.

There was a mother with 14-yr old twin girls who was insisting they came back from a night out at 11pm. I found this excellent because that is curfew time for my eldest and he's always moaning about it saying it's too early.

I also know you should pick your battles and not fight every front because that is too exhausting and ends up being counter-productive.

There's been quite a lot in the papers recently about experts debunking some of the most recent child-centred parenting theories. I thought most of them were a load of rubbish anyway so was happy to see that the new thinking confirms this.

Of course, my eldest thinks he's incredibly hard done-by but I think that's not such a bad thing because when he's eventually free he'll get to appreciate his freedom all the more. And with a bit of luck he'll want to leave home to savour its sweetness.