105: Helping Your Pre-Teen and Teen Navigate Friendships

12/30/24 • 25 min

Jessica Speer is the award-winning author of BFF or NRF (Not Really Friends)? A Girls Guide to Happy Friendships and Middle School - Safety Goggles Advised. Her interactive books engage and entertain readers by combining the stories of preteens and teens with fun activities and practical insights. She has a master’s degree in social sciences and explores social-emotional topics in ways that connect with kids.

Why are friendship and social struggles common in the preteen and teen years?
The book shares nine hidden friendship truths. What are some of these truths?
What is the Friendship Pyramid, and why is it useful?
The book explores the difference between conflict and bullying and ways to respond to each.
The book has interactive components, like quizzes and fill-in-the-blanks. Why is that important?

Sponsored by EdGerety.com

Resources

Website: https://jessicaspeer.com/

Why are friendship and social struggles common in the preteen and teen years?
The book shares nine hidden friendship truths. What are some of these truths?
What is the Friendship Pyramid, and why is it useful?
The book explores the difference between conflict and bullying and ways to respond to each.
The book has interactive components, like quizzes and fill-in-the-blanks. Why is that important?

Sponsored by EdGerety.com

Resources

Website: https://jessicaspeer.com/

Previous Episode

104: The Empty Nest - Navigating the Challenge of Change

In this episode we’ll explore the dichotomy between challenge and change in our lives as our kids grow, seek independence and control, and what that means for us as parents and as individuals.

Jay Ramsden, the enlightening voice behind The Empty Nest Coach on TikTok and Instagram, helps people navigate the uncharted seas of mid-life and empty nesting as he thoughtfully unravels the threads of change, growth, and self-discovery in what has become your new normal. Jay believes there are endless opportunities awaiting us in this new phase of life because life doesn't end in your 40s, 50s, and beyond -- it begins again.

Letting go and moving on
Having trust that we’ve set them up for success
What does letting go look like in our conversations with our kids?
How to find balance in our relationships as they gain their independence
Answering the questions; what now and what’s next as parents decide their next chapter
Examining the challenge of change as our kids grow

Sponsored by EdGerety.com

Resources

Website: https://www.jasonramsden.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the.emptynest.coach/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@the.emptynest.coach
This Empty Nest Life Podcast - https://www.thisemptynestlife.com/

Next Episode

106: How to Use Attachment Theory to Navigate Conflict with your Teen

Understanding the impact of our early experiences and how we adapted allows us to better understand ourselves as people and as parents. The influence of our early attachments on how we learned to relate should not be underestimated; it can offer us valuable insight into how we may behave as a parent. Yet in all cases, no matter what our attachment style is, being a good parent starts with exploring our own story and being willing to look at any pain we experienced growing up.

We can develop ourselves and develop healthier relationships, which will allow our children to have a healthier and more secure attachment with us. In order to make that happen, we have to be open and focus on our own emotional growth and self-development.

As a child, Bev lived in a very unpredictable and chaotic environment where she never knew if she could rely on her parents to meet her emotional needs. This led her to absorb unhealthy relationship ideas based on what she was witnessing: she believed relationships were supposed to be unbalanced, uncertain, and overall chaotic. If you have an insecure attachment style, you probably relate to her experience, and navigating relationships can be particularly difficult for you.

Prior to becoming a Certified Attachment Practitioner and founding Securely Loved, Bev was an Executive Leader, University Lecturer and published author, having obtained her Masters' Degree in 2006. She has dedicated her entire career (25+ years) working with adults in the realm of personal growth and professional development.

Defining the traits of secure vs. insecure attachment.
The first 5 years of a child’s life creates their future attachment style.
Intergenerational trauma can be repeated in raising kids if the parent doesn’t heal their own wounds.
Understanding how our attachment style affects our emotional + thought patterns, communication style, relationship to boundaries, coping mechanisms, and ability to emotionally regulate.
Using attachment theory to navigate conflict with your teen.

Sponsored by EdGerety.com

Resources