It is during this period that communication seems to consist more of the slamming of doors, tears, sulks and angry outbursts than of actual rational talk. A teenager's life makes a dramatic shift between their 12th and 13th birthday. Socially they are no longer considered children and symbolically it is their first step into the daunting adult world. Putting an End to Verbal Boxing Matches, by Dr. Ferne Cherne Teens wonder how they were born into such families. Parents, on the other hand, wonder how they could have given birth to such alien creatures.
Teens think their parents totally lack understanding.
Parents are sure they never acted the way their children do. Requests from either group often end in emotional outbursts, slammed doors, raised voices, high blood pressure and a widening of the chasm between generations. But teens and parents can learn how to talk to each other, listen to each other and eliminate virtually all these cataclysmic interchanges. Seemingly small conflicts between parents and teens, such as phone calls, homework, chores, dating and curfew, can erupt into full-blown battles. Guidelines Reproduction of this material without written permission is strictly prohibited.