Healthy family relationships, like a healthy diet, are everything. Being a teenager is hard. Parenting a teenager is hard. The closest thing we have to a handbook is the Center for Parent and Teen Communication. Where was this when my dad and I were butting heads in the 80s? I am working on being a better listener and communicator with the help of the proven, science-based strategies the Center provides (all for free!).
I aspire to be a Lighthouse Parent, but truth be told, I’m more of a Helicopter meets Do As I Say mom. I am not proud of this. My parenting stems from both a cultural adherence to obedience and anxiety about my own choices as a teenager. I always had someone to catch me but didn’t have someone to guide me. Parenting is all about lifelong learning and growing, and I’m happy to get the Center for Parent and Teen Communication’s daily 100-word email to give me tips and encouragement to navigate these teen years with my sons. Sign up and let’s help each other be the lighthouse our children need.
And check out these other short clips. They all struck a chord with me for different reasons, and I imagine I am not alone. Which one resonates the most with you?
This post is made possible with support from the Center for Parent and Teen Communication, part of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. All opinions are my own.