This is probably a bit silly but I am concerned so thought I would ask for some advice from you lovely ladies...
I have a teenage son who is 17, some of his friends now have their Ps, they are wanting to venture out and drive to different places, which I can understand, I'm just concerned because they are new drivers and have no experience , how do you put your worries and concerns aside and let your son go with them?
Teenage Driving
Teenage Driving
Posted in:
Teenagers, Tips and Advice
6 Replies
You just have to. You talk to your son about his options regarding if someone is doing something dangerous.
Wether it happens this year or next year, or the year after your fears are going to get your fears.
PS my son is in his 20s. It's like the first time they walk to school on there own or you leave them with a baby sitter. The nerves are there and you push through them.
You just hope you've raised them well enough and they have the good sense to choose friends wisely.
In another year your son most likely will be wanting to test the water in pubs, heading to university, work, and thinking about moving out of home in the future.
Trust that you've raised him to be a good adult.
I'm so worried about this stage (I have about 10 years to go), your concerns are not silly at all. I hope some mums with older kids can give you some good advice.
Talk to him lots about not driving recklessly and not letting his friends pressure him into driving recklessly if he is the driver.
As a passenger talk to him about not encouraging his friends if they are being silly and if he is in a situation where his friends are putting themselves and him in danger, then it's ok to call 000! Better to be safe than sorry.
Other than this always remind everyone to have a safe trip, ask for a rough idea of where they will be, when they will be back and request him to text you on arrival and when they're leaving. I'm 27 and still msg my mum to let her know I arrived safely if we go on a trip that's an hour or mores drive.
A majority of drivers aren't hoons, but of course there's always a few. I think the good thing is that they do have some experience (I know in Vic we had to do 120 hours of driving and have strict P plate laws) and experience is gained over time - maybe just having a chat to your son about getting into the car with the right people and not encouraging burnouts etc.. My mum always said if we ever felt unsafe or that the person wasn't fit to drive then to call her immediately and she would come and get us, no matter where or what time it was.
If all states are the same, then they've had to have driven 120 hours prior to getting their licence. So at least they've got more experience than in our day. But you're right, it is nerve wracking. My eldest is now 20 and her just driving 20 minutes to the shops would stress me out. She had to text me when she left or arrived, and always at night I needed a time of when to expect her home. Not that she went out often, so she started telling me midnight and was home by ten, just to cover herself. She was the only one in her group of school friends with her licence. She didn't have party hard friends either, but if there was a party they'd sleep over and all walk or get lift with a parent. We insisted she call any time if she needed us (I encouraged her to call her dad mostly 😊)
She's at uni now, is quite often the Des driver but I trust she's with other sensible kids.
I'm anxious when she drives the 5 hour trip back home, through some windy mountain ranges and then the M1. She texts me as she's leaving, then the halfway mark. I always have to push her to leave early enough to head back so she's not driving at dusk with all the roos.
My 17 yo son has 6 hours left of his 120, with 40 plus night hours. I take him driving in the rain as much as possible too. He'll go for his license in a month or two. I feel like I'm now ready, that he's ready. A couple of months ago, no way, but he's matured plus he's doing drivers ed at school which has helped. He's also very rule focused (just one of the autism spectrum's many perks 😂)
I like the suggestion that someone made re having a code word, good for any situation where they don't feel safe or comfortable and then you go pick them up. They save face in front of friends by complaining about getting in trouble and mum is coming to get me, oh bumma