Writing to a troubled teen in a show is a difficult task for parents. Adolescents may not understand why parents are forced to send them to a reform and rehabilitation program. Some teens may be angry at their parents for not understanding their problems. Parents should carefully write letters to their troubled teen so that a healthy relationship will be maintained when the teen completes rehabilitation and returns home to the family.
Praising the teen in the letter will go a long way toward building the teen’s self-esteem. Parents should emphasize how much they admire the adolescent for making the effort to reform. They should complement the adolescent for sticking with the program. However, parents should be careful not to praise too much to the point of seeming insincere. Parents should wait for the teen’s letter informing them of progress and any issues the teen may be facing. Parents should not overemphasize that the program is good for the adolescent.
The letter should be a query letter, not an instruction. The adolescent is in a program and is being tutored by professionals. The parent should ask the teen about program activities. They must show interest in what the adolescent has learned. Parents should ask if the adolescent enjoys learning the more positive aspects of life. Ask your teen what changes you should make. Parents should tell the adolescent that they, too, are part of the rehab plan.
Humor is a happy interlude in a letter from parents to a teenager on a show. Adding humorous anecdotes about something that happened in the family or in the neighborhood can make your teen smile. Humor can lighten the parent-child relationship even if it is strained. Your teen is going through a traumatic experience of reforming a negative lifestyle and will need something to smile about when on a show.
The letter should reflect the trust and faith that parents have in their adolescent child. Parents must show through their letter that they are proud of the teenager. They should tell the teenager how much they miss him and how much they expect him to return home to a happy family existence. Parents should explain how important the teenager is in their life and how much they expect to see him at the end of the program.
Parents should monitor through their letters the activities of the program and if the adolescent feels that it is working well. Parents should make it clear that the adolescent does not need to continue with the program if it is not working well. They must make it clear that they are there for the adolescent and that they are willing to listen to any problems the adolescent has with the program and if the adolescent wants to leave the program with a good reason, they are willing to have them come back.
Writing a letter to a troubled teen in a program is a delicate proposition for any parent. With thoughtfulness, kindness, and humor, parents can get their troubled teens in a program to receive their letters.
