Hi @seaglecc thank you for sharing your story.  It is so sad to hear that with all the education and information available about the negative impact bullying has it is still happening at a school level.     I hope your son is benefiting from the help he is receiving.  Can I ask what impact the bullying had on your other children witnessing their brother being in this situation?  It would be hard for them.  I know my older son gets extremely frustrated about how little the staff at my daughter's school did to support her and he doesn't attend that school.   My daughter has received some counselling which does help however once the sessions are over she tends to regress.     Our relationship is pretty good.  Like all families we have our disagreements and where she will withdraw.  All I do then is to let her know that I am there when she wants to talk.  I have learned that when she does start to open up I am best to sit and listen, ask for clarification of what she is saying when needed and not try to problem solve for her.     ... View more

An update on my daughter.  So things really declined both at school and home.  The bullying escalated especially over social media.  This was a really difficult time for both my daughter and our family.  Her attendance at school significantly declined and so did her health both physically and mentally.  The only thing that didn't decline was our determination to keep e lines of communication open and continue to support her.  We had lots of long conversations and about the use of social media, the pros and cons of it. We continued to contact her school who unfortunately we not very supportive.     So so at the end of last year my daughter decided that she was going to leave school.  We attended some open days at the local TAFE and she is now enrolled to do her Certificate II in Early Child Care.  She is fantastic with young children and has decided that she wants to be able to work with kids with disabilities.  She is really looking forward to this new start and will hopefully meet some nice people and start to form some healthy friendships.   As for the social media that side is also starting to get better.  We are still monitoring her use of it and who she is adding as friends.  We talk a lot about "feeding the beast, starving the beast". When you reply to bullying you feed the beast.  When you don't reply the beast is starved and has no fuel to keep them going.     Her physical health has improved however the impact on her mental health is still a work in progress.  The scars the bullying has left on her self worth will take time to heal and unfortunately she is not open to the idea of seeking professional help at the moment.     As a family we will continue our unwavering support and encouragement of her.     ... View more

I encourage my kids to earn their own money.  My son referees football matches each weekend.  He plays football and loves being involved in the game.  The downside to that is that he has to wait until the end of the season to get paid.  The upside is that he budgets really well and that money normally lasts until the start of the next season.  He has money to cover the christmas school holidays and the next ones. Unfortunately my daughter is not so motivated to get a paying job.  She does volunteer her time to netball coaching but that doesn't help when she wants new clothes or to go out.   I'm trying to encourage her to get a part time job but her lack of self confidence is playing a big part in her not trying.  She is quite independent in as much that she can cook, clean, use a washing machine and is fantastic at looking after her niece and nephew.  She is fantastic wiith the kids that she coaches but is very hesitant to take that next step of getting into the workforce. If @jacew is still online I would love to hear how he encouraged his daughter to get work. ... View more

I found that when my son reached year 9 that he started to slacken off at school.  He attends a boys school and when I raised my concerns they said that was normal.  They often saw a dip in their enthusiam towards school but assured me it would improve again.  My son is now in year 11 and I wouldn't say he is always enthusiatic but his ethics towards his study has started to improve again.  I agree that he does what is needed even though I know he is capable of doing better.  I try not to nag him but do spend time to talk about his goals that he has set and what he needs to do to achieve them. I suppose like the saying goes, you can't put an old head on young shoulders.  All we can do is support and encourage them and try different ways to keep them motivated to reach their goals. ... View more

Hi.  I have two teenagers.  A boy 17 and girl 15, a dog 3.  My two teens are totally different yet equally talented in their own way.  Their independence levels are unique and so are the things I allow them to do.  This causes conflict with your allow him to do this but not me.  Trying to explain fairness is a constant discussion that happens.  My definition of fairness is what suits the individual however that doesn't sit well with them when they see one being able to do something the other can't. How do others deal with this situation?   ... View more

I hate winter.  I find it hard to get motivated and those long cold, dull and miserable days leave me wanting summer to return as soon as possible.   In saying that, both of my teens play winter sports so its early mornings Saturday and Sunday, standing in the rain cheering them on from the sidelines.  Training three nights a week listening to them when they finish saying how warm it is.  Me grumbling how I should be in a nice warm place, how I can't feel my feet or hands, even though I'm rugged up waiting for the snow to start. Yet I wouldn't change it because I see their enjoyment and commitment to being part of a team. Seeing them socialising, exercising and learning new life skills that make them the unique and wonderful humans they are.   But I still hate winter.     ... View more