Here are five ways you can respect your teen’s privacy without damaging your bond.
Knock before you enter
Knock on your son’s or daughter’s bedroom door before you enter. You wouldn’t like it if they simply barged in to your room without knocking so give them the respect that you want. If you barge in they will likely shriek 'privacy', but if you knock they will likely let you in.
Don’t ask for every single detail
Unless you are concerned that your teen is getting up to something that they shouldn’t be, you don’t need to know every single detail of where they were or what they got up to.
Never ever snoop
It is important you never snoop in your teen’s room, no matter what you are looking for. If your son or daughter finds out, you will immediately lose their trust; if they are getting up to something that they shouldn’t be you will end up pushing them away further and they won’t come to you for help when they need it.
Don’t look through their phone
When your kids start to shut you out, curiosity often gets the better of us and some mums can end up having a bit of a look around on their teen’s phone just to see what they are up to. However, just like snooping in their room, this is a huge invasion of their privacy that is very hard to come back from if you are found out. If you want to know about their life, ask them.
Give them space of their own
Make sure your teen has space that they can call their own or go to when they want to be on their own. If they share a bedroom with a sibling, try to set up another quiet room in the house that they can go to when they need to be on their alone.
