Well.. Ok.. there are probably many things they are not telling you but there’s one in particular we’re talking about here.

One of the benefits of having an almost crystal clear memory (of the horrors) of being an angst-ridden teen is that it helps when you’re an adult to empathize with teen concerns.  And whatever your role, parent, teacher, therapist, when you’re trying to help,  empathy is far more useful than irritation, helplessness, anger or frustration (speaking from personal experience, that is). You’ll probably be familiar with those feelings..?!

A lot of us remember episodes from our teens with alarming clarity – a clarity that as adults can be amusing, maybe embarrassing, often helpful. Recalling one of these episodes helped enormously in a session or two with a particular teen who felt left down by her parents’ discipline style, or, as happened in this case, the lack thereof.

It inspired a successful piece of work with this client and with her parents, and with everyone’s permission (including my own mother’s, who played a starring role!) I decided the share part of their story in blog form.

It’s about a secret wish that all teens have, that you deserve to know, and that they kinda wish you knew anyway.

You can read the piece in full here – we hope you find it helpful! And so many thanks to Lexie of Voiceboks – the Voice of Parenthood for sharing it on such a  great site!