There is a trend in the United States for parents to overindulge their children. Parents often feel guilty for working a lot and try to make up for it by giving their kids anything they want. Divorced parents try to make up for the child having to go through those experiences by attempting to buy the child’s love. Other times, people just want their kids to be able to have everything they desire. They may think they’re helping the teen fit in at school. Parents do this by not setting boundaries, fixing all of the child’s problems for them, buying them whatever they want, not requiring chores, and generally trying to keep the child or teen happy no matter what.

The problem with overindulgent parenting is bigger than just a new generation of spoiled teens and adults. It has been shown that this behavior by the parents is linked to drug and alcohol abuse among teenagers. According to experts, the teens are being set up for a variety of negative things, including depression, promiscuity, drug abuse, and alcoholism. Teens that have been given everything they wanted are more likely to end up with an addiction problem.

While parents think they’re helping their kids by doing these things, they’re setting them up for failure. The teens don’t know how to handle anything by themselves. They are much more susceptible to being influenced by a friend offering drugs and alcohol. They have less understanding of negative consequences to behavior, and think that addiction can’t happen to them. They know that if they do develop a drug and alcohol addiction, their parents will just bail them out again.

Parents can fix this problem by setting boundaries for their teens. Doing so now is better than having it done in an addiction treatment program or rehab facility.