PLEASE. Stop beating yourself up.

Does any of this self-talk sound familiar? 

“Nothing I do is working.”
“I’m ruining them.”
“I suck at this.”
“Everything I’m doing is wrong.”
“I’m a bad parent.”

So much of parenting effectively is how you talk to yourself.

So please, STOP BEATING YOURSELF UP.

When these thoughts fill your mind, it doesn’t help you, and it doesn’t help your teen.

These thoughts lead to exhaustion.

You disengage from your teen.

You give up.

Right when your teen needs you the most.

So listen.

Parenting a teen is hard.

There was no preparation for the challenges that you face.

And if you are like me, you assume you should know how to parent a teenager.

So when it doesn’t work, you feel guilty.

You feel shame.

You feel like a failure.

Listen to me when I say, you are a GOOD parent trying your very best.

You’ve read this far, which shows your desire.

So take a breath and talk to your teen.

Explore what’s going on.

What do they enjoy?

What frustrates them?

What are their hopes?

What are their fears?

Your teen is another human being.

Just like you, they want connection.

They want to feel like nothing is wrong with them.

They want to feel like they belong.

They want to feel important to you.

You can do this by just showing up and listening.

You can do this by telling yourself,

“I am a good parent doing my very best.”

Because you are.  

♥️ Jeanine

P.S. There are simple strategies you can learn to create a calm home. CLICK HERE to explore what it’s like to work with me. 

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