Psychiatrist Advises Parents to Help Prepare Teens for Challenges of Dating

Among the many nerve-wracking experiences of parenting a child is the moment when you realize that your teenager is (or soon will be) dating. However, according to an article by psychiatrist Dr. Gail Saltz on the MSNBC website, teen dating doesn't have to be a disastrous experience for young people or their parents.

One of the most important factors, Dr. Saltz wrote, is that parents take an active role in guiding and advising their teenage children:

Teen dating can be a wonderful and fun time where self confidence is built up, and dating techniques are learned. Teens also learn how to be both assertive and compromising, how to be giving to another and how to expect the same in return. All of this is a sort of practice session in order to find Mr. or Miss Right.

Unfortunately, too often teens start dating with no preparatory talks from their parents and then they can get into trouble. According to Planned Parenthood, about 10 percent of teenage girls in the U.S. become pregnant before age 20. And the U.S. Attorney General reports that 38 percent of date rape victims are girls between the age of 14 and 17.

"Talk to your children," Dr. Saltz advises parents of teens who are of dating age. "Teach them how to date, how to have respect for one another and how to protect themselves from emotional and physical hurt."

Several studies have shown that teens who have positive relationships with their parents, and who have developed healthy levels of self-esteem, are better prepared to deal with the many challenges of the teen years and beyond.

If you have been less-than-successful in communicating with your teen, don't give up. It's not too late to re-establish healthy parent-teen communication, and help your child pursue the brightest possible future.