As a mom of 4, I've done every parenting phase. Middle school has been the hardest - and the most humbling.

"Power struggles are useless. Sometimes it's better to walk away. Power struggles are useless. I avoid them at all costs. With my oldest daughter, I would stay and argue, determined to get my point across. "It's getting you nowhere," my mentor, a fellow special education teacher, would remind me. "You," she said, "need to disengage." She was so right. Arguing with my daughter often led to an increased escalation that made both of us feel awful in the end."

"As the mom to four, currently ranging in age from 12 to 20, I've gone through every phase, at least once. Two of my kids are now in college, one is entering high school, and my youngest is entering his second year of middle school. I think of my aunt's words and wonder if she thought this phase, these middle school years, offered anything amazing. For me, these years were and remain the most challenging of my life as a parent."

Parenting middle schoolers becomes particularly challenging because hormonal changes and fluctuating moods cause unpredictable behavior and escalations. Power struggles with tweens tend to escalate conflict and rarely produce positive outcomes, so disengaging and offering space can defuse tension. Practicing grace and restraint helps maintain relationships and models emotional regulation. Building a support network of other parents provides practical advice, emotional support, and reduces isolation during tough phases. Repeating these strategies across multiple children reinforces the approach and improves outcomes. Patience, consistent boundaries, and selective disengagement combine to make middle school parenting more manageable.

Read at Business Insider