Moms/Dads: 5 Tips for Discussing Healthy Relationships with Your Child
Rihanna and Chris Brown in happier times…
Yesterday, I was a radio guest on The Flow radio program with Marc Collins. The topic of the evening was Healthy Relationships for Our Daughters. Me and another guest, Ernestine Heldring of Scenarios USA talked about what was necessary for young people to develop healthy relationships. I think the most important thing that people can do is talk to young people about relationships. So many youth never get the opportunity to discuss relationships with an adult in their lives. Its beyond time to have that discussion.
The Rihanna/Chris Brown scenario gave the perfect opportunity to discuss teen dating violence. It brought a closeted issue to the dinner table. How many parents or teens talked about this issue with their parents?
There are many times in our lives when opportunities present themselves for our discussion. Let’s try to take advantage of them and make an impression on a young person’s life. In the discussion, I realized that parents may need some tips on how to discuss healthy relationships with their children, so here is a list below:
Tips for a Healthy Relationship Discussion:
1)Mention current tv show relationships (ie Gossip Girl) How do you or your teen feel about them?
2) Mention current images/storylines of relationships in the media (ie Chris Brown/Rihanna) How do you or your teen feel about them?
3)Mention current reality tv show dating experiences (ie For the Love of Ray J, The Bachelor) How do you or your teen feel about them?
4)Pull an example from your past–a relationship issue– and share it with your teen. How do you or your teen feel you should have acted/reacted?
5) Pull an example from your present relationship and share it with your teen. How does your teen feel that you’re handling the situation?
Parents be encouraged in sharing your personal testimonies. Your stories are seen as triumphant and make you seem as a warrior that has made it through some kind of struggle. We make a mistake when we try to hide our past from our children. Be encouraged. Be open. Communicate.
Below is a video in which I discuss with teens how they deal with two girls liking the same guy… These discussions need to be held…
Tags: advice, Chris Brown, healthy, relationships, Rihanna, Teen Dating, teen dating tips, tips, Yasmin Shiraz
About the Author
Yasmin Shiraz is the President of Still Eye Rise Films, an independent production company which films educational and thought provoking documentaries that chronicle the lives, traumas and experiences of youth. Her first production, Can She Be Saved?, a documentary that examines violence among middle school girls, was an official selection of the 2009 Roxbury Film Festival and recently won a 2009 Indie Award of Merit from IndieFest.
Yasmin Shiraz is the Award winning Author of Retaliation a novel about a community’s response to youth violence. In 2009, it was selected as one of the top Ten Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers by the American Library Association. She is the author of The Blueprint for My Girls: How To Build A Life Full of Courage, Determination & Self Love (Simon and Schuster) and five other books. Her best selling “Blueprint” empowerment series is utilized as a self esteem, motivational, and educational tool at middle and high schools, after school programs, non-profit youth centers, as well as Boys and Girls Clubs throughout the country. 
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