Parenting skills for troublesome teenagers

Raising teenagers can be a difficult, unrewarding job, as they struggle with out of control hormones and strive for independence.

This can cause tension and arguments at home, with family life suffering as a result.

However, help is at hand for struggling moms and dads in Charlottesville, Virginia, in the form of a new class offering parenting skills for those with teenage children.

Entitled ‘Surviving the teen years – it can be done’, the six-week course is run by the Children, Youth and Family Services organisation, NBC 29 reports.

The instructors told the news provider that the key issues that are covered are communication, teamwork and understanding – three things that are often missing in parent-teen relationships.

Their approach seems to be working – 100 percent of the young adults involved said their parents were trying to implement the techniques learned in class at home, while 90 percent reported improved relationships.

Steve Pasierb, president and chief executive of the Partnership for a Drug-Free America, recently argued that "many parents feel increasingly overwhelmed as kids become teenagers".

Despite the difficulties of discussing things like drugs and sex, he urged parents to "step in and help their kids, no matter how challenging the conversation".