These have been emotional, trying, intense, confusing, and uncertain times. There is a lot to navigate right now-- individually and collectively. Thus, I wanted to offer just *some* of the resources available to teens and young adults during this global crisis.
Now’s the time to help teens navigate questions of value and support them in understanding the importance of organization.
When (not if) you make a “mistake,” you have an “opportunity to repair” the connection with your teenager.
It's time to give your intentions even greater value by aligning your actions with it. The anticipation of the new year is a perfect time to focus inward and offer yourself some extra self-care.
Your awareness of your relationship to giving and receiving can help you make decisions, set intentions, and initiate self-care.
While experiencing a pretty intense emotional reaction, I remembered a powerful truth: I AM NOT MY FAMILY. Their thoughts, behaviors, and actions do not belong to me, do not define me, and do not limit me.
Limits don’t negate choices. Limits aren’t consequences or punishment. Instead, limits help young people understand boundaries-- their own and other people’s.
The truth is, dreams come from one’s internal compass, not from external sources, pressures, or societal norms and expectations. Furthermore, teenagers need space to explore, reflect, experience, and process and come to their own truths, their own path.
Spiritual practice can be a loaded topic. For some, it refers to cherished and meaningful beliefs and practices, while for others, it’s at best an empty cliché, and at worst it represents the oppression of religious extremism.
When (not if) your teen presents an undesirable behavior or seems "shut down", you have an opportunity to ASK about it, rather than telling them about (aka lecturing them).