Adolescence in the Family: How to Help Parents Deal with a Difficult Time for Their Children

For many parents, the adolescence of their children presents itself as a situation of great uncertainty and concern.

However, if it is seen as a normal and natural phase in the life of their children, and especially if you are well prepared to face it, it can be the right opportunity to consider it as a period of challenge and personal growth for the whole family.

Adolescence: a book to help and guide parents The book written by Dr. Teresa Artola González, Daily situations of your adolescent children, (Italian translation of the multi-edited Spanish book Situaciones cotidianas de tus hijos adolescentis) is a fundamental reference guide that helps to better understand adolescents and the situations that revolve around them.

This work addresses some of the most common situations and daily problems that many parents have to deal with. For example, it illustrates the characteristics of an adolescent’s development and what the main problems are between the ages of 12 and 16. The book is composed of six chapters and offers some pedagogical guidelines, to put into practice what is read, with some bibliographical recommendations to delve deeper into the subject.

The first chapter summarizes the transformations of adolescents and defines this stage as a process, not as a problem. Starting from this principle, the author explains this stage as a first step of transition towards maturity, towards the personal development of character and personality for the search for one’s own identity that leads to configuring the life project of future adults. Parents must face this process with serenity, patience, listening and unity.

The second chapter addresses the topic of communication between parents and children, which becomes problematic during adolescence. The author describes what parents’ reactions can be and the solutions to problems that arise precisely from the lack of communication. At the same time, she offers various solutions to resolve communication difficulties between parents and children.

The third chapter focuses on the topic of free time. According to the author, idleness has nothing to do with laziness. We must learn to use free time to do recreational, playful but also educational activities. Free time must be used responsibly and wisely. It is also good to accustom young people to open up to others with generosity.

In the fourth chapter, the theme of friendship during adolescence is reflected upon. The author explains that friends have a great weight in this period and can be a counterweight to paternal influence. Likewise, she points out that adolescence is the stage of the birth of true friendship and offers keys to ensure that this process is adequate, teaching children to develop social and communication skills.

In the fifth chapter, the problems that worry parents the most are addressed, offering valuable suggestions to solve them, such as intuiting the emergence of certain problems and preventing them.

Finally, in the last chapter, the author focuses on values ​​and virtues, such as sincerity, obedience, responsibility, ideals and sobriety.

The secret of every educational model is to always have an optimistic approach

The book offers a very effective consultation and orientation guide, with well-explained and organized content. Its reading is agile and, thanks to its practical advice, it is a reference work that every educator and father should consult with their children. Each topic is always approached with an optimistic point of view, but at the same time realistic, offering useful educational models to orient oneself in the current world and that can be concretely adapted to each real situation, starting from the point that knowing one’s children is essential to successfully intervene in their problems and concerns. (*) Carmen María Martínez Conde has a degree in Sociology and a Master’s in Marriage and Family