Joani Geltman has over 30 years of experience working with parents, children, schools, and community groups. She is also a parenting coach, college professor, and public speaker. In this episode, Joani share insights from her book, “A Survival Guide to Parenting Teens”, simple, concrete practical tips useful in those daily moments of stress as a parent when you wish you had the “right thing to do and the right thing to say”!
Key Takeaways
- Have you ever asked, “What were you thinking?” to your teen?
- The teenage brain is still growing, and parents often forget that their teen lacks experience.
- Parents are looking at their teens from an adult brain.
- Your consequences, you grounding them, is nowhere in their brain when they’re being impulsive.
- Telling your child not to do something is not a strategy.
- Small children respond okay with a voice of authority. In adolescence, this backfires.
- All family members are going through major transitions in their life simultaneously.
- What can you do if you’re having a fight with your teen?
- Teens just want you to acknowledge what you’re feeling.
- How can you talk to your teens about safety?
- As a parent, sometimes you can preface by saying, “I wouldn't be your mom/dad if I didn’t ask this...” to help your teen understand that you care.
Quotes:
“Kids feel before they think. It’s a brain that’s a volcano waiting to erupt.”
“It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it. With teens, that’s especially important.”
“Your teens might grumble, but you’ve now planted a seed with it; their safety.”
