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Dear Jean: I am an 18 year old boy. I
have very few friends, My parents are much older than parents of people my age (my dad's 64 and my mom is 54); I have a tough time relating to them. I have strict restrictions on me, even though I hardly go out. It hardly bothered me earlier but for the past few weeks I've been traumatised. I see my friends (the few that I have) be out late at night, and feel that even if I want to go out with them I won't be allowed beyond 11 or 12. This causes a lot of depression and anxiety. please help. Jean responds: Hi, I agree that you need to be associating more with your peers and have the freedom, at 18, to determine your own hours. It sounds as if you may be experiencing some depression, and your own depression and introversion may add to the problem. I would strongly advise you to find a counselor in your area to talk to in person. Even a few conversations with an unbiased person with experience with adolescents could help you "find your feet" in the relationship with your parents. You can find someone by looking in our Directory of Clinicians or by looking under Counseling in your local Yellow Pages. If you find you are unable or unwilling to consult a counselor in person (which remains my first recommendation), perhaps you can at least look forward to leaving home to go to college or to work somewhere else than from your home. Often older adolescents who have been too much under the thumb of their parents during high school find they can break away from the dependency /over-protection once they are away from home. Hope this helps a little. Jean. Disclaimer: Ms. Walbridge's
response to your question is |
I'm quite an introvert, and I don't really like hangoing
out much. Therefore so far, I've rarely been to parties or been
out late nights.