The article explores the emotional journey of a parent grappling with their teenager’s increasing independence. While the author fought against negative stereotypes of teen-parent relationships and built a solid bond with her daughter, she found herself struggling as her daughter began confiding more in friends and less in her. Despite understanding the psychological aspects of this transition, the author faced feelings of grief and clinginess. Ultimately, she learned to refocus on herself and accept this shift, seeing it as an opportunity for growth within their relationship.
The feeling of grief is sometimes surprising to people because they don't see it as grief," explained my neighbor Carla Corral, a licensed clinical psychologist whose oldest daughter is a sophomore in college.
Refocusing on myself helped me look forward to the future and a new version of our relationship.
While she's living her best life, I am coming to terms with the fact that this amazing human is spreading her wings, and my job is to...be a steady, soft place.
I worked hard to maintain a healthy relationship, and at 17, my daughter rarely rolls her eyes at me. She still likes to hang out.
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