Cold shouldering, yelling, phone snatching, laptop pounding — you name it, it happens. We parents, at times, lose our cool when trying to manage tech time with our kids. We are far from perfect angels, and we act in ways we sometimes regret, be it a situation with tech, running late to pick them up (guilty as charged), or saying something that comes off as very judgemental (again, guilty as charged).
So ponder this: When was the last time you can recall apologizing to your child or teen?
Apologizing to kids can have multiple positive effects. And, if you are not in the habit of doing this much, today is a great day to consider offering one out of the blue.
If you are already good at apologizing, how about trying a more challenging apology? For example, you didn’t intend to glance at their laptop and see an open email. Still, you did, and you learned some things that you need to discuss with them, but you regret and want to apologize that you didn’t stop yourself from reading the email (yet again, guilty as charged).
Today, I review a few reasons why apologies are such a powerful part of parenting, a key part of nurturing a stronger relationship and teaching communication skills. I also share an apology I gave my daughter not that long ago.
Not long ago, Tessa, my daughter, called me upset about a summer job issue. I could feel all her emotions transfer to me, and my empathetic response wanted to problem-solve. Yet I know she prefers that I don’t chime in and start doing this, but rather, she prefers that I ask her if she wants any suggestions.
Before I could stop myself, I started chiming in. I said, “Look, it's not fair that you don’t get even one break at work. Just tell him you have to get a break.” Immediately, Tessa went silent and said, “I didn’t ask you to problem-solve!” She was upset with me and said goodbye.
I knew I wanted to do what I call a “Repair and Retry” — inspired by “Rinse and Repeat.”
I waited an hour to let her have space. And then I texted, “I would love to call when you have a sec.” When we spoke, I said I recognized that I went to problem-solving quickly. I was sorry and would be more mindful next time to ask if she wanted help brainstorming solutions. The call went well.
One thing I know for sure: if you were to ask my kids if I did a good amount of apologizing over the years, they would say a resounding “Yes” right away. They would be smiling when they would say it because they have told me over the years that they really appreciated and learned from my habit of doing this.
This apologizing practice has been influenced by my time as a researcher in human communication in the health field. A long line of data shows patients highly appreciate being apologized to by medical providers when warranted. When warranted, I do this with my patients.
Questions to get the conversations started:
Here is a video from the Screenagers YouTube Channel that talks more about this subject
Cold shouldering, yelling, phone snatching, laptop pounding — you name it, it happens. We parents, at times, lose our cool when trying to manage tech time with our kids. We are far from perfect angels, and we act in ways we sometimes regret, be it a situation with tech, running late to pick them up (guilty as charged), or saying something that comes off as very judgemental (again, guilty as charged).
So ponder this: When was the last time you can recall apologizing to your child or teen?
Apologizing to kids can have multiple positive effects. And, if you are not in the habit of doing this much, today is a great day to consider offering one out of the blue.
If you are already good at apologizing, how about trying a more challenging apology? For example, you didn’t intend to glance at their laptop and see an open email. Still, you did, and you learned some things that you need to discuss with them, but you regret and want to apologize that you didn’t stop yourself from reading the email (yet again, guilty as charged).
Today, I review a few reasons why apologies are such a powerful part of parenting, a key part of nurturing a stronger relationship and teaching communication skills. I also share an apology I gave my daughter not that long ago.
Some months ago, I got back into therapy, and I remember the first day back, the therapist asked me, “Do you do a self-compassion practice?” I remember the moment because I had one of those little head-scratching kind of moments. My therapist's question about a self-compassion practice made me want to understand what I might be missing and, most importantly, how self-compassion could help me as a parent and all parents.
READ MORE >I just released a new Screenagers’ Podcast episode featuring a lively and productive interview with Charlie Appelstein, a social worker and the author of “No Such Thing As A Bad Kid,” who has worked with youth and parents for over four decades. He is full of wisdom about helping youth with behavior management. Having seen his parenting workshops, I can personally attest to the remarkable insights and impactful strategies he shares. In the podcast, we address challenging scenarios, including how to determine appropriate consequences for lying and managing rude behavior from our children and teenagers, among many other topics. Read today’s blog for a sampling of some screen time dilemmas and strategies for addressing them that we tackle on the podcast
READ MORE >We recently launched the Screenagers YouTube Channel where we will be uploading a range of new content and resources each week, such as movie clips, podcasts and other original content. I wanted this week to introduce you to the first regular feature on the channel - Screenagers Bites!
READ MORE >for more like this, DR. DELANEY RUSTON'S NEW BOOK, PARENTING IN THE SCREEN AGE, IS THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE FOR TODAY’S PARENTS. WITH INSIGHTS ON SCREEN TIME FROM RESEARCHERS, INPUT FROM KIDS & TEENS, THIS BOOK IS PACKED WITH SOLUTIONS FOR HOW TO START AND SUSTAIN PRODUCTIVE FAMILY TALKS ABOUT TECHNOLOGY AND IT’S IMPACT ON OUR MENTAL WELLBEING.