About Luula

Luula · ‎02-19-2018

Hello @Mallie and welcome to the forums! Look forward to having you here. Your weekend sounds great, there can never be enough cake smooshing if you ask me.

Luula · ‎01-11-2018

Hey @Manly123, how did that initial discussion go? It's hard to get the balance right of trusting your teen but also still putting boundaries in place to keep her safe. @Zoesplace @motherbear do you have any ideas or experience you can share here?

Luula · ‎12-02-2016

Welcome to ReachOut Parents @Mamma. Please feel free to introduce yourself or answer the questions above.

Luula · ‎12-02-2016

@seaglecc, @mumlittlehelper, @Mitzi I'd love to know how you approach alcohol and parties with your teens.

Luula · ‎12-02-2016

With schoolies in full swing and New Year's Eve fast approaching I'm wondering how you talk to your teens about staying safe when they are going out. Do you set expectations around alcohol, drugs, cigarettes etc? Do you have a curfew in place? Please share your tips below.

Luula · ‎12-02-2016

Hot.

Luula · ‎11-29-2016

@jdbza it sounds like you have a really solid plan in place and I agree that it's best to tell her before she sees her mum in person. I'm sure your stomach is in knots at the thought of having to tell your neice - do you also have someone you can talk to about all of this? I hope you don't mind but I just edited some of the names out of your post to keep everything anonymous and in line with our community guidelines.

Luula · ‎11-29-2016

@hippychick I like to think of stubborness as another form of resilience, which is an important life trait. Your boys sound like they got some pretty good traits from you!

Luula · ‎11-29-2016

@jdbza my heart goes out to you, your sister and your niece. It definitely sounds like it's been a challenging road. Are you planning to tell your niece about her mum's diagnosis before you see her in person in a few weeks?

Luula · ‎11-29-2016

Hey @mumlittlehelper, love the idea behind this and agree that speaking to someone that she trusts could be helpful but just a reminder to keep it all anonymous on the forums. Please don't reveal any personal info or arrange to contact or be contacted by another member. I hope you don't mind that I edited your post slightly to adhere to our community guidelines. I really enjoy reading all the kind and supportive contributions you've been making to the Forums, we love having you here.

Luula · ‎11-29-2016

@seaglecc if we think that we've got it tough trying to navigate the world of the modern day teen, just imagine how mind boggling it must be for the grandparents!! 😂 Haha, maybe you also need to sit down with the grandparents and have 'the talk'. 😛

Luula · ‎11-29-2016

@Chauny it must have been such a great moment to see your daughter laughing. Although she didn't cope staying with your mum for too long, it sounds like it might have helped a little. Have you thought about suggesting some other short visits with your mum? Maybe if your daughter knows up front that it will only be an hour or 90 mins, she might find it easier to cope with. @Lizzy it sounds like you're having a bit of a stressful day, which is definitely to be expected. It's so hard to switch the worrying off and I think we'd be hard pressed to find a parent on here that knows how. I remember reading in another thread @waldo_pepper posted about trying to have relaxed, regular chats with his daughter about light everyday things in the hope that she'll then be open to talk about the more serious things when it's necessary. Does she still talk to you about the not-so-serious stuff?

Luula · ‎11-25-2016

Anticipatory. @JenniferS if you need somewhere to let loose with your frustrations, feel free to head over to the venting for sanity thread.

Luula · ‎11-25-2016

Hi @Chauny, it must be devastating to see your daughter defeated. How are things going since your last post? Do you have anything nice planned for tonight while your daughter is with your mum?

Luula · ‎11-25-2016

Hello @AnxiousMum and welcome to ReachOut Parents. As you mentioned this is a forum for parents of teens but bullying is something that can impact kids at any point during their schooling years, so I'm sure we'll have some parents here with experience they can share. Understandably you're fuming about this situation and I hope you're daughter is doing OK. We do have a fact sheet on our main site about bullying, it is directed towards teens, but there might be some helpful info in there that is relevant for your daughter. We've also had some discussions about bullying on the forums here and here.

Luula · ‎11-25-2016

@JenniferS I like the way you talk about the 'delicate dance' of staying connected and openly communicating with your son. We're all just trying to make it to the pan-pacific championships without stepping on toes Also, I think it's really brave that you acknowledge that you might have depression in your post, it's kind of one more step towards doing something 'formally'. I know personally that sometimes it seems so much harder to do something about the way you're feeling rather than just keep keeping on, particularly if you are coping OK. Does it feel like that for you too?

Luula · ‎11-22-2016

Hello @hippychick and welcome to ReachOut Parents. You've definitely come to the right place and you're not overreacting, you just sound like a concerned mum. @johneriffic started a thread about his 14 year old son feeling lonely that you might find helpful. @Mitzi, @goingcrazy, @seaglecc are you able to offer any suggestions from your experience with your teenage sons?

Luula · ‎11-22-2016

Hi @Chauny, welcome to ReachOut Parents. Thank you so much for your lovely words of support. I really want to mirror them back to you - you are an amazing mum and you are doing an amazing job! It sounds like you have some great support in place at home but please do come back anytime to chat to some other parents who know what you are going through. @Lizzy I'm glad to hear that you're feeling more hopeful today but I can also understand that it must be so hard not to worry constantly. Have you thought about trying some mindfulness or meditation practices?

Luula · ‎11-22-2016

Hello @Mumofthree, situations like this bring all those primal protective instincts out, so please rest assured there is no judgement here. This parenting gig can be tough and we are all doing the best we can with the situation at hand. I know that @taziness and @waldo_pepper also have teenage daughters and they might be able to share some advice from their experience. We also have a fact sheet on online sexual behaviour that could be helpful. Have you been able to talk openly to your daughter about sex?

Luula · ‎11-15-2016

@taziness so glad to hear that things are looking a bit better this week. Will you stop back in and keep us posted on how things are going? I'd particularly love to hear how you all go on the meditation and bush therapy teen camps, they sound great.

Luula · ‎11-15-2016

@MumEJ I hear you on that first point - it's so easy to get caught up in all the 'stuff'! @Rubysixseven those are my favourite things about the weekend too - so thankful for sleep ins and coffee. A big welcome to all of our newest members @Tulips, @Lizzy, @ZenHippo, @Worriedmum. Please do tell us a bit about yourselves by letting us know the following: 1. How old are your kids and what is one thing they've done recently that made you laugh? 2. Parenting can be really stressful - how do you try to keep those stress levels down? 3. What led you to ReachOut Parents today? 4. What's your top tip for parents whose kids are about to enter teenage years? 5. What's the best thing about weekends?

Luula · ‎11-15-2016

Hey @MumEJ, how are things going with your son this week? Have you had a chance to try asking/negotiating instead of telling? If you have, how did it go?

Luula · ‎11-15-2016

Hi @Lizzy, this is a heart-wrenching situation for you and that feeling of helplessness is well and truly justified. I'm so glad to hear that you've sought help for yourself as well as your daughter, because it's really important to have someone to talk to, and be able to 'fall apart' in front of while you are putting on a brave front for your daughter. We have a fact sheet on some ways you might be able to help your daughter manage self-harming behaviour that might be helpful but please know that you are doing the best you can by making sure that your daughter has a psychologist she can talk to and reminding her that you love her and are there whenever she needs. We have other parents in this forum who have been in the same position that you are now with their daughters, who I'm sure will jump in with some further words of support. Please keep us posted on how you are doing. P.S. I hope you don't mind but I moved your post to new thread so that more of our other ReachOut parents can find it.

Luula · ‎11-15-2016

Hi @suzie I just wanted to check back in with you. How are things going with your child?

Luula · ‎11-15-2016

Welcome to ReachOut Parents @Tulips, I'm so glad you've found us because It sounds like you are going through an incredibly stressful time at the moment. It's clear that you are doing everything possible to hold it together for your family but that it might be taking it's toll on your own mental health. Please try not to be too hard on yourself, you are doing your best in a very challenging situation. @Worriedmum, and @Sadie have posted previously about their teens and mental health - do you have anything from your experience that you can share with @Tulips? Some of our other RO parents have also had their own mental health challenges, who I'm sure will be willing to offer some suggestions.

Luula · ‎11-08-2016

Hi @taziness it's understandable that you're feeling overwhelmed at the moment, it sounds like a lot to handle. It's clear to me reading your posts that you love your daughters and are just trying to do your best to help them navigate teenager-hood. Your daughter, however, may not be able to see this and is possibly a bit blinded by her anger at the moment. The 'diary thing' aside, how did your daughter respond to you raising the idea of respectful sexual relationships?

Luula · ‎11-08-2016

Hi @suzie and welcome to ReachOut Parents. I can imagine how concerned you must be for your child and I'm really glad you've stopped by the forums for help. Have you tried to talk to your teen about self-harm? There is a fact sheet on things you can try to help your teen manage self-harming behaviour that you may find helpful. Your child can also talk anonymously with trained peer supporters over on the ReachOut forum for young people.

Luula · ‎11-08-2016

Welcome @taziness, great to have you here! And a big hello to our newest members @Bechelp and @sweet, please stop by and introduce yourself in this thread.

Luula · ‎11-01-2016

Hey @Panda, how are things going with your son's technology use?

Luula · ‎11-01-2016

@Polhon that's what we're here for! Please do keep us posted on how you are doing.

Date Registered	‎09-05-2016 11:59 AM
Date Last Visited	‎02-20-2018 06:00 PM
Total Messages Posted	73
Total Likes Received	12

Online Status	Offline
Date Last Visited	‎02-20-2018 06:00 PM

About Luula

About Luula

About Luula

Re: New member? Introduce yourself here!

Re: What do you do when your girl or boy starts da...

Re: New member? Introduce yourself here!

Re: Parties & Alcohol - tips for keeping teens saf...

Parties & Alcohol - tips for keeping teens safe

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Re: 14 year old daughter self-harming

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Re: New member? Introduce yourself here!

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Re: 14 year old daughter self-harming

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Re: What do you do when you've learned that your t...

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Re: my child is self-harming. what should I do?

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Re: my child is self-harming. what should I do?

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