Parenting Can Be Hard And We Can Help

Do you feel at the end of your rope with your child or teen’s difficult behavior?

Does he or she argue all the time and refuse to follow rules, leaving you exhausted?

Is your child or teen refusing to do chores, talking back, lying, or showing other disrespectful behaviors?

Is he or she getting poor grades, despite high intelligence and capability?

Does he or she have trouble keeping up with self-care skills such as time management, money management, household chores or regular grooming?

Is your teen unbearably shy and have trouble maintaining or starting conversations and friendships?

Do you worry that your shy child will never have friends or always be lonely?

Is your young adult having difficulty completing college classes, holding a job, and being able to live on their own?

Does your child spend hours and hours in his or her room on their phone or video games, and refuse to participate in family life?

You Are Not Alone in These Challenges

If you're a parent and can relate to one or more of the above situations, you are definitely not alone!  Parenting has become even more of a complex juggling act in recent years, and our children are dealing with issues even more stressful than those we had growing up. On the one hand, you have compassion for your child or teen dealing with hormone changes, school and social pressures, but on the other, it can cause tremendous anxiety and irritation for parents when our little angels act out over and over again!

Luckily, as parents, we don't have to go it alone, although it can sometimes feel that way.  

At River Shores Counseling we have helped hundreds of families over the years, and many of them have experienced similar problems with their kids.  Unfortunately, these are not problems that most parents want to admit they have with their children, and as a result, they are often ashamed or afraid to ask for help.  If you are one of these parents, please know you are not alone! Asking for help is hard, but once you do, these problem behaviors can be eliminated relatively quickly. 

I want to tell you about a form of life coaching called ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis) or behavior modification.  It is a strong solution for helping young people of all ages empower themselves, learn new skills, and be successful in life... and it can put a STOP to problem behaviors within a matter of weeks - really!  

How Does Behavior Modification Stop Unwanted Behaviors in Children and Teens?

Behavior modification is successfully used to treat a variety of distressing teen problems, including aggression, acting out, eating disorders, and disrespectful attitude. Whether your child is struggling with mental health issues, social anxiety or making the right choices, our in-home behavior specialists can help your family create the positive changes you are desperately seeking in your child – all in the privacy of your own home.

Our coaches will help you learn that using positive reinforcers like praise, encouragement, or being given a privilege (such as getting to use the car, being allowed to have an extended curfew, or not having to do a certain chore) can do wonders in reinforcing good behavior and eradicating bad behavior. Negative reinforcers such as ignoring yelling or screaming, taking away privileges, such as phones, Ipods or car keys can also do a great deal to stop bad behavior. 

With in-home behavior coaching, your child plays an active role in their own life coaching, instead of parents or other adults dictating the structure of rewards and behavior changes. This method also does not label your child a “problem” like traditional counseling approaches. It is presented as a form or tutoring or “life coaching” which eliminates the need say they are in “therapy”.

For some families, getting out of the house to attend sessions is extremely difficult. In that case, the help of an in-home ABA therapist can be a real life-saver, an additional plus to using this approach.  

Why Haven't Your Efforts Worked So Far?

As a parent myself, I can almost hear what you’re saying now: “Wait!  We’ve tried those things and they just don’t work.  We’ve taken away the phone, we’ve tried to offer rewards and the changes never last.  How will this be different?” Great question!  To answer I would ask you to be honest and ask yourselves:

  • Have we been consistent with setting limits over the long term?
  • Have followed through with consequences EVERY time?
  • Have we been firm with the rules despite our child’s attempts to argue and get us to back down?
  • Have we consistently stayed positive and rewarded good behavior even when our child tries to push our buttons?

If your answer to some or all of these questions is no, don’t feel bad or think you are an awful parent.  It’s extremely difficult to be consistent with a hormonal, energetic and emotional child or teen.  That’s why in-home coaching can make such a huge difference in your success with upholding limits with your child and stopping the stress and conflict between you once and for all.

Think about this for a minute – did Michael Jordan, Oprah, or Adele achieve such great levels of success without employing coaches and advisors along the way? The same principle applies to parenting.   

It’s OK to Ask for Coaching and Help to Guide Your Teen Extraordinary Behavior

Having an in-home coach will teach you to consistently create a supportive and caring environment that will show your teen the consequences of continued poor choices and help them learn how to make better decisions in the future. In fact, a behavior coach can help you and your teen create and follow a written contract that clearly states the terms of the reward system.  Most importantly, she’ll support and guide you as parents to stay on track with the plan and not back down.

Here are some of the behaviors River Shores Counseling can help your child develop:  

Social skills:

  • Engaging in appropriate, non-eating disorder related conversations
  • Using eye contact
  • Completing chores the first time asked
  • Ending sarcasm, arguing and back-talk
  • Having courage to talk on the phone
  • Engaging in leisure activities with peers
  • Meal time interactions (Making meal times more enjoyable and less anxiety-provoking)

Daily living skills:

  • Trying new foods
  • Cooking meals
  • Meal planning for the day/week
  • Creating a budget
  • Self-care skills

Independence skills:

  • Helping young adults “launch”, attend college, hold a job and support themselves.
  • Cooking meals independently (not relying on others to do so)
  • Meal planning
  • Grocery shopping independently
  • Tolerating being alone without using drugs
  • Living independently
  • Going to appointments independently
  • Getting a part-time job  

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If you have been at the end of your rope with your child or teen’s behavior, don’t give up.  Our coaches can come to your home and teach you how to stop the conflict and dangerous behaviors rapidly, and also help you and your child feel closer.  It’s completely private and confidential.  If you would like a free 15 minute phone consult to discuss your child’s specific situation and how we can help, just call us at 904-737-3232 or fill out a confidential appointment request form below. We will be in touch with you TODAY.

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