Social Media

We talk with parents A LOT about social media.  How do you navigate this social media world?  How do you navigate your relationship with your children’s relationship with social media?  It’s a lot!

Social Media is…..social! We all want to belong and feel significant, at every age, and this is an even more intense yearning during adolescence.  There are so many more places to connect and belong on social media, and understanding what is real can get scary for parents.   How can you be there for your child in real life, reassuring them that they belong, no matter what.

Find “your people” provides the affirmation which teens crave. And, it can get slippery when that craving leads to unhealthy communities. Our goal as parents is to help our children find and understand who they are in a world which offers so many options and places to feel part of a community. It’s vital to our relationship with our children that they understand that you appreciate and value their perspective. Their perspective is going to be different because they are a different generation.

Social Media, technology-these are not going away. Just Say No…didn’t work in the 90’s and doesn’t work today. How do we get information in?   Valuing others’ points of views.  Adolescents understand risk, so you can ask questions about that. Cost/Benefit analysis is not their string suit, but their brains are developing.  Conversation builds understanding. Building understanding is more effective in relationship building. Let them reason things out with you.  For themselves.  Without jumping in.

The Practice: Practice your ABC’s Appreciate the kid/s. Remind them that they Belong. It takes a great

Positive Discipline

The Emotional Lives of Teens Lisa Damour