Your high school senior is king or queen of all he or she sees. But that will soon change. The college decision has been made – whether to attend and where. High school is over. The lingering remnants of summer remain. And as the new academic year begins to dawn, your child knows there is something new, strange and somewhat foreboding that will shake his or her royal throne!
Unseated and overthrown
Your kingly son or queenly daughter is about to meet a few new characters – competition, change, uncertainty and fear. Your daughter won’t let on that she’s plagued by these new friends entering her life. Your son won’t find any comfort in other students because they are all pretending to have it together. But truly, for the first time in a long time, your teen will feel young, dumb, confused, dazed and stupid.
Your daughter may spend increasing amounts of time with her high school friends as the feelings of loss strengthen. Your son may retreat into his room for amazingly long periods of time. Teens can become uncommunicative, moody and distant as they deal with the loss of their royal status and begin to face life as plebians. Yes, young, dumb, confused, dazed and stupid.
These feelings may seem vaguely familiar because your teen probably felt that way as a high school freshman. The feelings may feel familiar to you, too, from your days as a first-time dad or your first professional job or your own first day in college. You didn’t know where the buildings were, who the professors were or what the classes would be like.