This is additional information to the previous blog on the teenage brain. It's such an pivotal era in life and there is so much going on that I feel it's important to emphasize the need to try to understand. Teenagers process feelings and instructions in the amygdala (seat of emotions in the brain) rather than the prefrontal cortex (seat of rational thought) as adults do. As I explain in the below posting, the prefrontal cortex is in the process of extensive remodeling in the teenage brain! Identifying and understanding emotions in themselves as well as in others is a development-related skill rather than a natural instinct. That is why teenagers can sometimes seem to lack compassion as well as being emotionally charged to over-react. Teens can use some help in developing the skill of recognizing the feelings of others as well as analyzing their own reactions. This can be done by adults setting examples (on a train or bus a parent could say "that person looks old/tired/ ill so I will give up my seat to them"), role playing (in the LDS Church we have weekly family home evenings which would be a perfect time to offer real-life situations where kids could think about how to react), hearing about other people's experiences (don't just tell the factual details, include how you feel or noticed another's feelings), or even just thought-provoking questions (How do you think that handicapped person feels when kids complain they're moving slow or in the way?). Teenagers also need opportunities to practice self-management/control skills in order to develop them. It can be helpful for teens as well as the adults around them to understand that they can and should recognize, ponder, try to understand, and seek to control anger, passion, hyper-excitement, depression, and over-sensitivity to possible offense. It is not a desirable thing for us to become emotionless automatons but it is much more peaceful for society as well as individuals to be able to ride the waves of reaction to incidents rather than go to extremes in outward emotions. Willpower is a measurable trait that draws on a finite mental resource that can be strengthened through training. Lashing out at loved ones or strangers can cause undesirable reactions. Extreme expressions of emotion are exhausting for any individual as well as for those around that individual. Think in terms of things like road rage....... or passionate hugging leading to kissing between teens in isolated places...... or depths of depression by a teen who has had a bad day at school and feels unpopular, unsuccessful, therefore worthless.
I repeat, it is not desirable to do away with emotions and the expressions thereof. It is just easier to cope with less extreme outbursts of emotions. Sometimes people can incite riots, suicide, going further than they intended simply by riding a wave of hysteria. Adults SHOULD be a little better about understanding feelings and can help by letting teens know that what they're feeling is okay. Figuring out how to deal with those feelings is what they might need help with.
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