How important are family relationships to teens?
Having a strong family relationship is very important and critical for teens. If they come from a broken home, divorced home or a home where their parents are still together, it is very important that there is a strong bond between the teen's family. Teens view their family lives and use it to prepare for their future. What they see at home is what they are going to take into their family homes in the future. Fifty percent of children that are born in the next two years will experience some type of divorce in their life.
How do you keep your family bond strong when you come from a broken family? It starts with the parents. Getting divorced is never and easy thing, making the decision alone is hard for the parents let alone the children involved. Being the parent and living through the divorce is hard, but making sure our children are going to be ok is even harder.
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Putting aside personal feelings between the parents is a must. Putting the other parent down in front of your children will show your children that it is OK to hurt another person. What you are saying about the other parent, you are saying about your child. Your child is a part of both of you and you cannot expect your child to pick sides. You as the parent need to do what you can to support the other parent in your children's lives.
If you are divorced parents, do what you can to attend your children's events together. This will help your teen to see that even if you aren't married you can still get along to support them. Be sure that your teen knows that you will not be getting back together, but you want to be together to support them thru everything. Statistics say the 60% of teen suicide is from fatherless homes. If your teen has lost a parent to death or separation, support your teen as much as you can. If you find they need more support, contact your local crises center or a counselor that can help them work thru their feelings. A teen has many emotions and feeling that they are learning and not sure how to get through. Dealing with a loss can turn their world upside down.
If you end up meeting someone new, be patient with your teen. Having a new person come into their lives can be very difficult. You are their parent and the person they look up to for guidance. Make sure that everyone is OK with the new situation and the new person you are dating gets along with your teens. They may not see eye to eye on every subject, but they need to have some type of relationship that is a positive and healthy one. If you follow the advice of some psychiatrists, they state that divorced parents should not start dating again until the children are grown up and out of the home. While this may be difficult for you to accept, you need to realize that your children are your number one priority and your needs come after theirs.
If you are a family that has stayed together without divorce or separation you need to still show your teen what a strong relationship and family bond is. Do things together as a family. Set aside family time and leave cell phones, computers and televisions off. This will help to keep communication open between everyone in the family. Take vacations together. When you decide it is time to go on one, get the whole family together and talk about where everyone wants to go. When you have chosen a place, let each person pick an affordable activity that everyone has to do. This will help bond your family closer together as you learn what each other likes and enjoys. Keep your family life happy and communication open.
