April 9, 2018
Little Darlings Dr. Laura: I've heard many callers talk to you about defiant teenage behavior. I raised three kids (now all adults) who did NOT act out at all as teens. I am sure one of the reasons for this is that, when they were in grade school and high school, neither my husband nor I went to the school to complain about an assignment or an exam being unfair. If one of my kids thought an assignment was unfair or too difficult, we encouraged him or her to rise to the challenge, and we offered some ideas on how to tackle it. Parents who rush in to save their "little darlings" often help create helpless, dominated and weak kids, in my opinion. Those kids end up defiant to assert power over their parents. Unless a teacher or principal is doing something illegal or that constitutes outright abuse, parents should let the kids adapt, cope, and learn to deal with the challenge. Mommy isn't going to be in medical school arguing with professors. That's how one of my kids ended up a Harvard Medical School graduate! Madeleine
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