Communicating with your Teen: Trial and Error

The teenage years can be very challenging for all involved. Communication in any relationship is tricky and this can be even more so with teens that you love and care for so much and want the best for. As parents we have expectations for communication and our standards here can be at odds with how teenagers communicate as their brain is developing, along with searching for identity within a complex world of relationships. There can be a natural instinct to want to impose our perspectives on our teens as we seek to guide them through what now seems to be an infinite amount of messages being received! However, in our quest to provide this guidance to our teens there is a balance between how much we seek to influence them while allowing them to understand and experience decisions they make for themselves that may not always turn out so well. Step back, suspend judgments, and open yourself to a teen’s world with curiosity and acceptance. Be cognizant about how you build relationships and seek to preserve connection with your teen, as this is where you will nurture and sustain a lifelong foundation of understanding, support and guidance for them.