Understanding Your Teen

  Raising Responsible Teenagers Everyone has heard when they were younger that it is important to be responsible. Now that you're a parent, it's up to you to help your teens become the most responsible young adults that they can be. Let's talk about why responsibility is important and how you can help your teen become responsible. School and Responsibility Schooling and education can be one of the best, biggest, and easiest ways that teenagers can learn responsibility. Sometimes, teenagers would rather focus on anything but school. They might be more interested in the cute new girl they saw in the hallway or what they're going to wear to the next dance. Even though those things are just fine to think about, there should always be some sort of expectation for how your teen is going to do in school. Have a conversation about it. Realistically, what would you like to see your teen accomplish in school? Will they need any help? What happens if they don't achieve their g...

  Talking to Your Teen About Sex Being curious about sex is a normal part of being a teenager, thanks to all of those raging hormones that come during puberty. Parents can help their child learn about healthy and safe sex and all of the topics surrounding it, but sometimes a lot of parents don't know how to bring up this type of conversation. It is super beneficial for parents to be able and willing to talk to their kids about sex. They can help their teenager understand their feelings, help them know how to make good decisions, know how to stand up to peer pressure, and know when to say no. There are so many benefits to talking to your kids about sex. Research has shown that when parents and their children have conversations about sex, their children are more likely to wait to have sex and are more likely to use condoms or birth control when they do have sex. (1). I know so many people whose parents never, EVER, talked to them about sex. This is partially due to the fact that it...

How to Communicate with Your Teen If you're reading this, you most likely have a teenager in your house. You're probably noticing that they may be more angsty, rebellious, and antsy. But don't worry, that's just your average teenager going through puberty. Puberty is a huge change for teenagers. It changes the way they think, act, communicate, and see the world. Puberty is also a crucial time in all teenagers' lives. They may have a harder time being able to pinpoint their emotions and truly understand what they are feeling. This is also the time where teenagers start to become more self-aware, experience sexual and romantic feelings, and begin to identify themselves and who they are as an individual. (1). There are so many different and new hormones raging throughout their body that at times it can get a bit overwhelming. They may take some of this out on you, as their parent. In these moments, it may be hard for you to communicate with your teen, but it is possibl...