Questions

Relationship Reboot

Posted on 12/9/2019

This is a Part II to an early question submitted about a very strong-willed and increasingly mouthy 16-year old daughter. Please bear with someone who has subscribed for YEARS without submitting...

Divorce challenges parenting.

Posted on 11/21/2019

My daughter left home on September 3rd, after I removed her door and we had an argument. She told me I was a terrible mother and a psychopath. She said she was leaving and I asked for her keys,...

17 YO Boy's Odd Behavior

Posted on 11/5/2019

17 year old grandson has hidden lady’s purses under bed or in a drawer. They are empty and he gets them from family homes(ones no one uses). Happened about 4 times with fairly long lengths of...

End Micromanagement of Grades by Lowering the Boom

Posted on 10/15/2019

I have two sons (13 and 14 years old) and one step son (12 years old). They've gone to a Christian school their whole lives and are all saved. My issue is with my 13 year old. He is very smart as...

17 YO Girl Plays Blame Game

Posted on 10/3/2019

This was my last question and needed to help answer this question: John, I have read many of your books and listen to your podcast regularly. I am a Christian and agree with your biblical...

Custody Decision For 17 YO

Posted on 9/26/2019

John, I have read many of your books and listen to your podcast regularly. I am a Christian and agree with your biblical parenting principles. However, I am divorce from an atheist and he is...

Defining family morals.

Posted on 8/9/2019

My husband and I recently found out that our 16 year old son is having sex with his girlfriend. As you can imagine, we are extremely disappointed. We aren't sure what to do, if anything. Our...

God's Anointing was an Annoyed Teen

Posted on 7/14/2019

16 year old does not want to attend church. Should we expect her go most of the time? We've told her she can take breaks because we understand our small church does not have teens her age, other...

16 YO Boy Loses Job, Lies, & Vapes

Posted on 7/8/2019

Our 16 you son was fired from his first job today at a pet grooming shop. We know the owner as we've been taking our pets there for over 9 years. The owner called us to explain that our son had...

It's Not Too Late!

Posted on 7/8/2019

Semi-independence has reared its ugly head in our youngest who goes off to college in the fall. Our mostly obedient and kindhearted daughter has basically grown a head so big we are surprised she...

Parents Concerned about Sexually Active 16-Year-Old

Posted on 6/25/2019

Our 16 year old daughter has lost her virginity. I am concerned that she is continuing to be sexually active. I don’t know when she would have the opportunity but I’m Not naive to the possibility...

18 YO Dating Abusive Man

Posted on 6/23/2019

Should I stop by 18 year old from dating a guy who is verbally abusive to her? My daughter listens to all the red flags about this boy and agrees. Yet she says she needs time to end it. After...

Beating the Bullies

Posted on 6/20/2019

Here’s a topic I’ve been struggling with that I just saw John address in a Facebook post – mean kids. My oldest son (9) was complaining about some kids at his summer camp saying things like...

Going With Your Gut

Posted on 6/5/2019

I have a 17 yo daughter. I foolishly gave in to giving her an iPhone when she was 13. My husband died 4 years ago. Because of a rebellious attitude of her older sister, I realized these iPhones...

Why 17 YO Boy Lied?

Posted on 5/17/2019

Last week my 17 year old son lied to us. Blatantly and obviously. Together we attended a school band event, the kids were allowed to stay for a DJ and dance. My son texted me and asked if it...

Kicking An Angry 17 Year Old Out Of The Garden of Eden

Posted on 4/13/2019

Our 17 year old son is completely out of control. None of the consequences that we have given him have helped. His biggest problem is his angry outbursts. He has destroyed his relationship with...

Teaching Values to Teenagers

Posted on 3/18/2019

Good morning, How do I address a difference in values with my 18 year old son? He will graduate in 2 months so still lives at home. He is materialistic and very focused on brands and "image". He...

Let Go or No?

Posted on 3/16/2019

My 16 year old son wants to live with his dad in another state for his junior and senior years of high school. I’m reluctantly willing to let him go. How do I navigate this transition?

Trim Teen Talk Time?

Posted on 2/22/2019

My son will be 16 In a month. When he was younger, he and I (his mother) would have 'talk time' - when we would lie in bed before he went to sleep to talk, share, etc. We stopped doing that a...

Lifestyle Advice

Posted on 1/31/2019

About 18 months ago, our now 16 year old son told us he is gay. We have a good relationship with him. He is a Christian as are we. Our family goes to church every week and is very involved in...

The Defiant Young Adult

Posted on 1/31/2019

My son turns 18 tomorrow. He seems to think this means he can do whatever he wants, including not doing what I ask. He is picking his girlfriend up at the airport this evening and I told him he...

16 year old lacks motivation

Posted on 12/9/2018

My son has become increasingly argumentative and disrespectful. He only seems to care about material things. He is now 16 years old and he is working with a job coach to help him with getting a...

To Curfew or Not To Curfew

Posted on 11/7/2018

My 18 yr old daughter attends college but lives at home. She makes stellar grades and is attending on a merit scholarship. She does chores around the house. She is a responsible person. My...

Dad's Not on Board

Posted on 11/4/2018

Hi there, Susan Morley recently answered a question I posed concerning my son who has been caught with vape materials. She recommended strict consequences which I want to impose. His father,...

Worried Grandmother

Posted on 11/3/2018

My granddaughter has OCD and has a therapist and a psychiatrist (who prescribes meds). I read your article stating you feel that kids with anxiety, mental health issues do not need meds. Does...

The High School Experiment

Posted on 10/22/2018

I feel like I ask the same questions all the time. My 12th grader is stressing me out, he is barely making his grades in school coming in at B, C, D's and E's. He's a good kid but I suspect...

What to do when households have different rules for teen stepson?

Posted on 10/19/2018

My husband and I follow your columns (my mother quoted you regularly growing up, sometimes to our dismay) but now as a stepmother and father to a teenage boy, we find ourselves in a tough spot. We...

Rebellious 17 YO Daughter

Posted on 9/19/2018

my 17 year old daughter continues to lie to us. At age 15 she snuck out and bought a cell phone and lies have continued since then. She has stolen money from me. She just totaled the car we let...

Teen Proofing with Cell Phones

Posted on 9/12/2018

I am currently reading John's book Teen Proofing. In chapter 3 he discusses the six C-words, curfew, cash, car, cohorts, conflict, and consequences. He gives detailed explanations of how he and...

Revisiting the teen driving issue.

Posted on 9/11/2018

Our son had no major violations for six months and we agreed to pay for drivers Ed. He is nearing completion and set to test for his license in October. We currently drive him to career tech...

Teen Dating

Posted on 9/4/2018

Hello -- Do you have any collection of articles about teen dating? (it did not seem to be listed as a subject) Any overall rules of thumb to apply? We have a 16 year old boy that is getting...

Unmotivated Teenage Boy

Posted on 8/12/2018

My teenage son is not interested in engaging in anything that requires effort. He gives up on everything he tries after just one attempt and after much coaxing and prodding, refuses to try again....

Find aFriend for college student

Posted on 8/9/2018

What is your opinion about phone apps like "Find My Friends" that allows parents to know their children's location? I had never heard of this but when my oldest left to college, she introduced me...

Figuring things out isn't easy.

Posted on 7/6/2018

I have been married for more than 25 years. My husband came with a daughter from his first marriage and we have two of our own. He is very permissive-extremely guilt ridden and operates from the...

17 yo Girl Can't "Roll" With 23 yo

Posted on 6/28/2018

I have just recently discovered that my 17 daughter has been in a secret relationship with a 23 year old man who is an abuser of Methamphetamines. She has never used drugs (to my knowledge) nor...

16 yro struggling when the going get tough

Posted on 6/17/2018

I have a 16 year old daughter. She has a high GPA but struggles with things become difficult. For example, she doesn't want to go through the SAT study guide because it seems difficult versus...

Husband files for divorce after wife takes a stand with teens.

Posted on 6/1/2018

Dear John Rosemond, I wrote in a while ago on putting the marriage first. I was never able to get my husband on board which indeed caused a great deal of strife in our family, especially with...

Son Expelled Again--Mom Seeks Help

Posted on 5/27/2018

I have been seeking help from this site for a while. We may have benefited from a parent coach but could not afford one. My son has been expelled from his second Catholic School. We were left...

Telling 17yo daughter of Divorce

Posted on 5/27/2018

How do we tell our 17 yr old daughter, about the dad's decision to divorce. The difficult part for me,...we are Christians, and our issue, poor communications. How do I help, that she not feel...

Leadership parenting is not always popular ...but worth it.

Posted on 5/7/2018

Hi again! I asked a question about my now-17-year-old son a couple of months ago. I followed the advice given, as well as that in John's book about teens and as result, surprise surprise, my son...

Chore In-completion

Posted on 5/7/2018

Our son will not complete any chore he asked to do. He will start a chore, (cleaning fish tanks and cleaning horse stalls) after being told many times but he doesn't complete it thoroughly after...

Get everything in writing when it comes to loaning adult children money

Posted on 5/2/2018

Two and a half years ago my 37 year old daughter and her husband needed a car to move from New York to California since he had lost his job but had another in California. So I sold my daughter...

Living at home or on campus for rebellious teen?

Posted on 4/12/2018

Our eldest is my step-daughter and she is graduating high school in May, and beginning a university program in town in summer. She has planned to live on campus, but is now feeling anxious and...

Preparing for College

Posted on 4/11/2018

How can I prepare my son for college? I'm trying to pass more responsibility to him to help encourage him to become more independant and self sufficient.

Teen Depressed or Just a Normal Teen?

Posted on 4/2/2018

My 17yo daughter claims to be anxious and depressed due to lack of best friends. She was homeschooled until junior year, when she enrolled in the local community college full time. She's getting...

Lights Out for 16 Year Old?

Posted on 3/19/2018

Is it unreasonable to tell a 16-year-old boy he should have 'lights out' by 10:00? He works hard on school, despite not liking it, but often stays up until 1 or 2 a.m. doing homework or reading. ...

Two out of Three

Posted on 3/5/2018

My 9+ year old talks back to teachers and classmates, calls other students names, won't follow directions of teachers and refuses to do what he's been told (one teacher captured it perfectly...

Never too late to become a leader.

Posted on 2/20/2018

I have a 16-year-old son whom I have custody of 50% of the time. His father is very permissive and expects no chores. I am not and have expectations of household help. He consistently refuses,...

Drugs

Posted on 2/8/2018

My 16 year old has some very straight friends and some that are experimenting with drugs. I am suspicious all the time and have drug tested him which he has passed. The party house is across the...

Three Angry Teens, One Frazzled Mom

Posted on 2/6/2018

I have a 17 year old, a 15 year old and a 13 year old all whom believe life completely and utterly revolves around them. the 17 year old boy refuses to look for work, he has let his learners...

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