And Avoid the Frenzy and Nightmare

Techo-Teenagers by Leonard John Matthews on FlickrIf you find that when your son or daughter enters teenage years your relationship with them starts to change do not be concerned. This is a new phase of their life. As a child, they may have been willing to follow your ways, your standards and your beliefs.

However now they are entering a stage of life where they will decide on and define their own beliefs, standards and ways. Some of their decisions may conflict with your perspectives, but do not be concerned.

Two major keys to any successful relationship is love and communication. One expression of love is to show a genuine desire to communicate with the person.

When both love and communication are present in a relationship any problem can be worked out.

Teenager on the train by 1Nancy on FlickrWhen some parents face difficulties with their teenagers that seem impossible to solve, they tend to take the “easy way out” and simply ignore their teen. I am sure you have heard of the theory “if I ignore it, it will go away”. This is so often the human way of coping with many situations that are difficult to handle.

However, in actual fact ignoring a problem does not solve anything, but rather it allows time for any unresolved emotional reactions to go deeper and fester.

There will be added difficulties if communication difficulties existed with your teenager when he or she was a small child. But be encouraged, it is not impossible to restore your relationship with your teen to become a successful one. It will take some time, patience and a determination to win. But always expect the best, and you WILL win!

If we cannot trust another person, then there is really no relationship. When considering the definition of trust, I find it difficult to separate unselfishness from trust. What do you think? Think about the following comments.

A person who openly displays characteristics of selfishness is not someone whom you will readily trust. You will know that in moments of stress or life crisis, you could never count on them to help or support you. They will be too busy thinking about themselves.

We need to come to grips with the reality that no one is perfect. Sooner or later, everyone around us will fail us in some way.

At least they will not always live up to our expectations of them, because our expectations will probably be above what they are really capable of doing at times.

The question is, how are you going to react when they fail? You need to ask yourself honestly …