Adapting parenting to the needs of youth requires both a toolbox of techniques and knowledge about the effects of their experiences.

The second part in the Parenting Teens series focuses on tailoring your approach to respect the impact of trauma. This course starts with a self-assessment exercise in which you will discuss your own responses to certain behaviors. This leads to a conversation about the science of brain function, which continues from Part 1 to be foundational in this training, with a lot of time devoted to learning about the two major adaptive responses to threats and state-dependent functioning. You will learn about the importance of understanding traumatic history, how to start a conversation with a youth about their life, and what the impacts of fear are on development and emotions.

Finally, you will look at parenting techniques to “reframe” behaviors or actions that are based in trauma by finding positive alternatives that allow for growth and change in manageable ways. When you leave this training you will be encouraged to either practice parenting techniques you learned or think about which techniques would be challenging and why.

Each part of the Parenting Teens series should be taken in sequential order.