If you've got a teen girl — or even a tween girl — you might have hit up against that dreaded parental encounter known as "Meeting my child's boyfriend." Sure, boys date too. But, let's face it, parents tend to be more worried about their girl children entering into the dating world. It's girls that get pregnant. Girls that get raped much more often. The Steubenville scandal, and all of the similar cases, happen to girls. Who wouldn't be worried? Chances are, if your daughter has brought home a guy, you've given him the fish eye, maybe even grilled him. Hopefully, you've talked to your daughter about how he's treating her. And, hopefully, he's a good kid. But what if he's not? Here's 10 signs your daughter might be dating a bad boy.
1. She now cries more than she smiles. If your daughter's general mood has plummeted since she started dating her dream boy, it doesn't look good. Do you hear her crying in her bedroom? Stifling sobs while on the phone? Sniffling while texting or stalking him online? In short, is she bawling most of the time now? Time for a dating intervention.
2. She starts breaking rules. You give her a curfew, she breaks it. You tell her she has to do chores before she goes out, she ignores you. This isn't necessarily the boy's fault, but obviously he's having some sort of negative effect on her, especially if she was a good, obedient kid before she met HIM.
3. She starts dressing more provocatively. Again, this could be her own decision, but a girl who goes from jeans and ratty shirts to minis and half-shirts in the blink of an eye might be getting signals from her new bf that this is what he finds attractive — your daughter's sexual appeal, not her personality.
4. He's disrespectful. If a young man will disrespect you — refusing to meet you or make eye contact, talking back, swearing in your presence, etc. — you can be sure he will disrespect you.
5. What she's saying. If your daughter is suddenly saying things that sound inappropriate in terms of what her bf is telling her, maybe something like, "Doug thinks I'm too fat, do you think so?" or "Caden doesn't like it when I tell him I want to go to college," then it's time to have a serious chat with your kid about how men should treat women.
6. His looks. Tattoos, biker jackets and nose rings are one thing — a good kid can have all of those — but watch out for telling signs that he's into darker things. A Swastika tattoo, for instance. Ratty and dirty clothes with pants hanging around his ass could be a sign that he has no job and no plans to get one, because what employer would let him dress like that? T-shirts with awful sayings, maybe something like, "Hopeless Romantic — Seeks Filthy Whore" (a real T-shirt).
7. His demeanor. A kid who is surly, depressive, non-responsive, joyless, angry, impulsive, or lazy may again be a good kid deep down, but obviously this kid has some issues, and teens generally don't work through their issues until they're adults. You don't want your daughter to wait that long.
8. He drives like a maniac.
9. He commits crimes, even petty ones.
10. Lying. You begin catching your daughter in lies about where she is with her boyfriend, or even if she's with him. If she starts saying she's at the movies and you found out she was at a party, chances are these two are up to no good.
Has your teen ever dated a bad boy?
Image via Columbia Pictures
