"Age 4 is the first adolescence"...how true is this?

[paigevz]

My mother has always said this after being told this once by a pediatrician.

Have you ever heard this before? If you've had adolescents or remember being 4 and an adolescent, do you think this theory holds up?

 

[fabumouse]

My mother has always said this after being told this once by a pediatrician.

Have you ever heard this before? If you've had adolescents or remember being 4 and an adolescent, do you think this theory holds up?

I read that children around the age of 3 or 4 are inundated with hormones that are not repeated (in intensity and, um volume . . . ) until the child goes through puberty.

So, YES. I've watched my DD struggle with her demons and she says to me "my brain made me DO it!"

 

[pirateofthecarolinas]

So, YES. I've watched my DD struggle with her demons and she says to me "my brain made me DO it!"

My DS 4 says the same thing.

 

[slk537]

After trying to get my DS4 out of bed some mornings, I'd almost swear he was actually 14. DH and I have to call him our "mini teenager" for lots of reasons way more often than I would like....

 

[Marseeya]

How odd.

I actually thought my kids at that age were wonderfully easy, but now that I have a teenager, he's worse than taking care of a 4 year old. I keep saying he's regressed to toddler/preschool age! I have to watch him like a hawk like I did back then, and he's constantly making up lies to keep himself out of trouble just like he did at that age. He also seems incapable of reason, which is just the way he was at that age.

I think I can see the point, but given the choice, I'd rather have my son at 4 than 14.

 

[MsLeFever]

Baby Girl (4) will fold her arms and yell "no"! She would NOT stay with us today at the science center, all she wants is to have her friends over to play, she really likes to wear tight shirts from last season that show her belly.

oh yeah - she's a "teen" alright!

 

[luvmydogs]

I wish ds--nearly 11 would be as wonderfully easygoing as he was when he was four. He was a joy to be around back then. Now, as he's entered the preteen years, he's hormonal and beginning to get mood swings and a know-it-all attitude. He'll be sitting with me cuddling one moment, then acting as though I'm the world's biggest embarrassment to him the next. Dh and think he's actually going through menopause.

Each child goes through stages as s/he gets older, but for my son, this age is definitely the most challenging he's ever been. And from what I've been told, the best is yet to come!

 

[mom2alix]

I have said repeatedly that DD is 4 going on 14. The attitude and sassing drive me crazy! It's definitely a limit-testing phase.


The pediatrician also told me that this stage 4-6 yo is similar to adolescense in how they're growing etc. One interesting thing he mentioned was that if you can help your child maintain a healthy weight during this period and again at puberty, they shouldn't have weight problems as they get older. Apparently these are the prime time for fat cells to develop. He said kids who get chunky during those growth periods will have to work a lot harder to keep a healthy weight as adults.

 

[going2disney]

How funny to find this post today, my son turns 4 tomorrow and I just said today that 3 was much more trying than 2, never heard this theory about 4 being the first adolescence. Hoping the "nixy" behavoirs and attitude are a little less common in this next year. Atleast at this early age there is still the innocence- makes many things more bearable and easily forgivable.

 

[NMAmy]

How odd.

I actually thought my kids at that age were wonderfully easy, but now that I have a teenager, he's worse than taking care of a 4 year old. I keep saying he's regressed to toddler/preschool age! I have to watch him like a hawk like I did back then, and he's constantly making up lies to keep himself out of trouble just like he did at that age. He also seems incapable of reason, which is just the way he was at that age.

I think I can see the point, but given the choice, I'd rather have my son at 4 than 14.

You said it, Sister. A 4 yo is NOTHING compared to a teenager. I'd a million times rather have a 2, 3, or 4 yo. Actually, even the 2, 3 AND 4 yo at the same time.

 

[pirateofthecarolinas]

You said it, Sister. A 4 yo is NOTHING compared to a teenager. I'd a million times rather have a 2, 3, or 4 yo. Actually, even the 2, 3 AND 4 yo at the same time.

Ahhh, you haven't met my DS4. He is NOTHING like his brother or sister. It has been a constant battle with him since he was 18 months old. My DH jokes that by the time he is 16, we will be too tired to care what time he comes in. He also feels that we need to keep an attorney on retainer, just in case!

Lori

 

[noodleknitter]

I read that children around the age of 3 or 4 are inundated with hormones that are not repeated (in intensity and, um volume . . . ) until the child goes through puberty.

So, YES. I've watched my DD struggle with her demons and she says to me "my brain made me DO it!"

Do you by any chance remember where you read this? I would be really interested in it. Thank you!

I remember 4's being harder than 2's, and it being a bit of a surprise! I like the teens, though! The ability to communicate is a good thing!

 

[Marseeya]

Do you by any chance remember where you read this? I would be really interested in it. Thank you!

I remember 4's being harder than 2's, and it being a bit of a surprise! I like the teens, though! The ability to communicate is a good thing!

Having the ability to do so doesn't make them more inclined to do it!

My DS had a severe speech problem when he was little but he still liked to talk to us. We went through a period of about 8 years where he talked. Now his speech problem seems to have returned because all he does is talk in grunts.

 

[lunchmomd]

When my older son was 2, and I was complaining to my BF's mother, she told me "If you think the terrible twos are bad, wait 'til the f*$#ing fours!" At the time, I thought she was NUTS, but time proved her right. I found both my boys easier to handle at 14 than at 4. Maybe it's a gender thing!

 

[NCRedding]

DD won't turn 14 for two more months, but so far, 13 has been a breeze compared to 4. She tested the limits on everything at 4, and drove me wild, to the point of actually tackling her at my parents house. (I put myself in time-out at this point, and realized that I was taking things too far).

I don't know what 14 will bring, although I am seeing flashes of it, but so far, I like this age better than 4.

 

[fabumouse]

Do you by any chance remember where you read this? I would be really interested in it. Thank you!

I'll look at my books today. It seems like every year I buy a new arsenal of parenting "guides" of some sort, trying in vain to stay one step ahead of my DD5.

I have to admit, I was telling my DH last night that you guys were scaring me.

14 is really too late into the commitment to send them back to whence they came, the little demons.

 

[paigevz]

BUT the perfect age for boarding school!

However, that would be a different thread entirely!

 

[Robinrs]

How odd.

I actually thought my kids at that age were wonderfully easy, but now that I have a teenager, he's worse than taking care of a 4 year old. I keep saying he's regressed to toddler/preschool age! I have to watch him like a hawk like I did back then, and he's constantly making up lies to keep himself out of trouble just like he did at that age. He also seems incapable of reason, which is just the way he was at that age.

I think I can see the point, but given the choice, I'd rather have my son at 4 than 14.

I totally agree...

I don't remember one second of problems with my son from 4 to 12... perfect ages. He's 13 now and THINKS he knows it all... UHHHH NOT!

I sometimes think doctors make things up as they go along.... I heard the same thing about the terrible twos.

 

[JVL1018]

My daughter is 6 going on 16.
The moodiness, the attitude, and then 2 seconds later all sweetness and snuggly with me.
She's still fantastic though-just a little harder than she used to be, she never had terrible twos-people told me it was really three that was bad..but she was great, then I was warned about 4, nope, not *MY* daughter<ahh how naive I was>....then she hit 5 and the whining commenced..then 6 and the whining subsided a bit, but the moods, oh my gosh, how am I going to survive the teenage years??
Those moods come out of nowhere!

She's been this way for about a year(she'll be 7 around Halloween).

My son is 4(will be 5 around Labor Day) and he has been a joy this past year, I love to be around him, I think he is hilarious and I can really see who he is now, he's really come into his own...even though he does have his moments, trust me. Usually around bedtime. LOL

But from 18mos until about 2.5, 3 we called him THE BEAST.
He was awful, just, ugh, words cannot describe the frustration, the bone deep weariness we had from dealing with his antics.

Not all the time of course, but we literally could not even go to McDonalds with him, forget about a real restaurant. He'd act up, squirm away from us, make a scene etc etc.
Now he's a human being again.

 

[paigevz]

Well, I was surprised about this, as I taught 4s for nearly a decade, and they seemed very sweet and cooperative (for the most part) to me!

My oldest ds has trouble with even years in general, odds are usually better.

Younger ds has been trouble since a little over 2, kind of settled at about 3 1/2. He's just turned 4, so we shall see!