Keeping teens connected to family!

Does your teen not seem to want to engage with the family anymore? Do they just want to spend time in their room alone? Does it feel like you don’t really know what goes on with your teen but you just can’t seem to get them to open up about anything? Does it seem like every little thing you expect them to do at home just makes them more irritated?

What if you had a system in place at home where your teen felt safe and able to open up about daily issues and you also felt like you can be the good parent you’re always striving to be? What if your teen told you where they are going and you could trust that they are telling you the truth? Imagine if your teen put forth some effort to meet your expectations and follow the rules.

In therapy, I help parents learn to be clear and consistent. We work together with input from the teens, to develop a system that is fair and meets everyone’s needs. Systems at home usually work best if your teen knows what the expectations are and what the consequences will be when expectations are not met, so I also help parents follow through with their promises, both rewards and punishments. It also helps if teens have some buy-in and believe that they are valued and respected. That is why a majority of my work with teens involves individual counseling, and bringing in the parents from time to time in order to collaborate on fixing problems in the system.

I help teens feel that their experiences are important, and that they are empowered to make changes if the current system isn’t working for them. I also help parents determine their own level of comfort as an engaging and comfortable parent and a disciplinarian (as necessary). When we can set up a system that parents are comfortable with and that teens feel respects their autonomy, teens often report having an easier time opening up to their parents so that everyone’s needs can be met at the same time.

Sound like this would be helpful? Call me today at 402-325-0117 x4 to find out more or to make an appointment, or book an appointment online!