Top 5 Tips on Moving House with Teenagers
Moving house can be a stressful thing to do. Moving house with kids is even more stressful. Add teenagers to the equation and you might be tempted to stay put! While relocating house is difficult for adults and small children, it is arguably toughest on teenagers. While they may think of themselves as adults, the lack of control over their own lives is made glaringly obvious when they are required change everything that is secure and familiar in their lives without any real say. Here are a few tips to help you stay sane as you prepare for moving to a new home.
1. Be open with your teenager about moving
It can be scary relaying the news that you are moving house to a teenager - although not in all cases - some teens may be eager to move and could appreciate a fresh start. A lot of teens though will be firmly entrenched in their social circle and could display anger and frustration at your decision to move. Fair enough too, teens work hard at making friends and fitting in whilst also trying to create their own sense of identity. While you think you may be helping by delaying inevitable news, it is actually counter-productive to keep your teen in the dark. Try to be open throughout the whole process so that your teen may feel that they are a part of the decision making process and that their opinion matters. Although ultimately, they may not be the one making final decisions, it will give them back some feeling of control to at least be included in discussions about moving.
2. Involve them in choosing a new house
Although it may not be logistically possible for your teen to be viewing potential new homes with you, try your best to involve them in the process. It is their home too so they need to know that they have some say in where they will be living. Of course they won’t be having the final say, treating them as another adult whose voice and opinion is heard will go far in allowing them to feel involved.
3. Familiarise them with their new home town
The unknown is always scary and this applies especially to moving to a new location. A vital part of preparing to move is to get to know as much about your new home town as you can, especially local to where you will be living. Settling in is made so much easier when you quickly become a part of your new community and get involved in clubs / hobbies / sports etc. that you were involved with in your old home town. Be prepared to drive your teen around their new town and school areas so they can familiarise themselves with popular local spots and have the confidence to begin exploring themselves.
4. Encourage and help them keep in touch with old friends
Although your teen may be leaving old friends behind it is important that they don’t need to feel all contact will be cut off. Discuss ways that they can have a meaningful send-off from their own town with their friends as well as encouraging and enabling them to be able to stay in touch. Thankfully with today’s technology, it’s easier than ever. Whether you treat them to that mobile phone they’ve been begging you for so they can email, skype and face time or whether is is facilitating visits from old friends at your new home - if this possible. The point is to maintain your teen’s peer support network to help them get through a potentially difficult time.
5. Moving day - Keep them busy
The actual day of moving may be the most difficult for your teen as they face coming to terms with the finality and realness of moving. Try to be understanding of their state of mind - to them it may feel like their world is ending. A great way to distract them from feeling upset is to involve them in necessary tasks to be done. If you are moving using a shipping container then a bit of physical and mental exercise in helping load the moving container may do them a world of good. If you are also moving with toddlers then being in charge of entertaining their siblings for the day is a great way to keep your teen occupied as well as helping you.
And as quickly as moving day comes, it goes, and you are left with the task of settling into your new home. Hopefully there are a lot of positives in your new location and the excitement of change and new possibilities may even get your teen in a positive frame of mind about moving. Just remember to support them through a difficult and stressful time and fingers crossed you all come out at the other end happy and settled in your new home.
To find out more about moving the economical, eco friendly and efficient way click here. DIY removals using a self pack shipping container is a great way to move your family and belongings interstate in Australia. If you would like to speak to one of our friendly team, give us a call on 1300 659 221 or for a free quote click here!