How to Know if Your Teen is Maturing On Time

Parenting a teen can be SO confusing. One minute you’re having an intelligent conversation with them about school then the next they’re exploding because you didn’t buy the right kind of peanut butter. What gives? 

Just because your teen seems like they can talk like an adult, that doesn’t mean they are emotionally mature enough to be one. Your teen is still developing. Stop making assumptions about your teen’s maturity timeline.

Your kid doesn’t need to be independent at 15 like they need to be at 18. Those three years make a huge difference in development, life experience, maturity, and education. 

There is nothing wrong with your kid needing more scaffolding than others either, that isn’t a bad thing. Give them what they need. Keep your judgments out of the equation, and praise your child for asking for help.

It’s also okay if you don’t know what they need either. That is the first step in figuring it out. If it brought you here, welcome. 

At Thompson Child Therapy, we offer a skills workshop called Parent Your Sensitive Teen. Here’s what you learn:

• Teach your teen to ask for help
• Coach your teen to manage their emotions safely
• Apply health social expectations and balance them with academic and household responsibilities
• Guide your teen to follow limits around safety without exploding or imploding (this requires you to deliver those limits safely without yelling, threatening, begging, or bribing)

Plus, more skills to help set boundaries and expectations.

Meet your teen where they are to help them fill in the skills they are missing. To learn more, click this link: https://thompsonchildtherapy.com/parent-dbt-skills-group/