What's Laura Learning? I'm currently reading Dr. Lisa Damour's The Emotional Lives of Teenagers. While it's not my first time through this book, I find it so easy to discover new nuggets of wisdom each time I open it. During my counselor training, I had an entire course dedicated to understanding empathy and the power of an empathic response in the counseling relationship. Dr. Damour affirms empathy as a tremendously powerful tool not only for counseling professionals, but also for parents of teens during daily interactions. While the responses of "I'm really sorry to hear that's happening" or "What I'm hearing you say is so hard - no wonder you feel so sad right now" seem counter-intuitive to helping your daughter solve a problem, a response like this helps her know that 1. you are listening, 2. you understand her feelings, and 3. that she is not only capable of considering solutions to her own problem - but that you believe she can be an expert on herself. And from my experience, empathic responses only encourage teens to keep talking -- and what gift can be! I'm here if you want to brainstorm or talk though empathy or anything else! Laura Roman Meet or Email: lroman@saintursula.org

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