(Entry 6) 3 Things never say to your teen.

1. You are wrong.
2. It’s in your head.
3. It’s not what you think.

Let’s begin talking.

1. You are wrong.

Which basically means, as a parent/caregiver/guardian, you are announcing yourself right.

Teens are no more small children. Their tiny brains have grown bigger, just as their views and opinions on matters. So stop saying You are wrong! and start rectifying your own behavior.

2. It’s in your head.

Remember in horror movies when a kid says – Mommy! There is someone on the stairs!? What ensues next? Mommy looks in the direction, sees no one and turns back to the kid with a smile and an ever-present placard of It’s in your head, honey.

Teens do not cook stories. They can cook 2-minutes noodles but they no more invent people/things just to find some comfort. They are on the way to be grown-ups now. A tiny versions of adulthood. Learn to believe them!

3. It’s not what you think.

Which basically accounts for – It is exactly what you think!

Teens have this innate ability to absorb cues. Parents’ verbal and no-verbal actions set the tone of the situation. If your teen thinks you are disrespecting your partner then you are disrespecting your partner. If your teen says you need to be polite then you need to be polite. If your teen says you are hardly present then you need to be present.

Teens takes things exactly as they are. They do not manipulate/calculate. Which bruises the adult ego. That is why teens are often referred as stubborn, strong-opinionated, unruly, undisciplined etc.

Living with teens has it its perks and non-perks. What advise will you give to a parent?