Am I Too Sensitive? (it hurts when your middle schooler argues with everything you say)

Am I too sensitive or is something else going on?

Do you ever walk away from a conversation with your middle schooler feeling . . . dismissed and, well, kind of small?

Maybe every casual comment turns into a debate. Maybe they correct you, play devil's advocate, or seem determined to prove you wrong. And somewhere in the middle of it all, you find yourself wondering:

Am I just too sensitive?

In this episode, we're unpacking what's really happening when your middle schooler argues with everything you say and why this dynamic can feel so hard.

We'll talk about:

• Why middle schoolers often debate ideas more easily than they share their feelings
• What may be happening developmentally beneath the constant correcting
• Why your sensitivity isn't a flaw to fix
• How to have an honest conversation that builds connection instead of defensiveness
• Practical scripts to help your child learn to disagree without damaging the relationship

This isn't about raising a child who always agrees with you.

It's about raising a child who can think independently while still protecting the relationship. And it's about remembering that you are a human in a real relationship with your child.

If you're longing for conversations that leave you feeling closer instead of farther apart, this episode is for you.

Ready to build a relationship that can weather the middle school years and beyond? Check out my Unbreakable Bond resource (click here). It's designed to help you create the kind of connection that lasts through disagreements, growing independence, and all the beautiful, messy moments in between.

I hope you'll also click here to find me on Instagram.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:11

Let me turn it on. Episode 10. Am I too sensitive? Why it hurts when your middle schooler argues with everything you say? Welcome back to middle years. Today's episode is about a dynamic that can make even the most ordinary conversation with your middle schooler feel exhausting. You make a casual comment, you mention something you heard, you offer an opinion that you are not particularly attached to, and suddenly your middle schooler is correcting you, challenging the premise, explaining why you are wrong, or taking the opposite position with the confidence of someone who has been studying this topic for the last 40 years. And you are sitting there thinking, I was just trying to make conversation. What makes this especially hard is that it can start to be more than just annoying. You may find yourself feeling dismissed, talked down to, or even a little foolish. And then because you know your child is still learning, you give them grace. You remind yourself that middle school is a developmental season. You try not to overreact, but somewhere inside another start. Sorry, I need to start that sentence over. But somewhere inside, another thought starts to form. I give so much grace in this relationship. Why does it feel like none of that grace comes back to me? That is where today's question takes us. We are going to talk about why some middle schoolers seem compelled to contradict, correct, or debate almost everything their parents say. We are also going to talk about why the approaches this parent who asks this amazing question has already tried, why they may not be changing the pattern, what her son may be experiencing when she brings it up, and how to teach him the difference between having a strong opinion and making another person feel small. Because none of us are attempting to raise a child who never disagrees with us. But we still want to raise a kid who has some tact. And what's so important for me as your guide through this terrain is this I don't want parents making themselves smaller, forcing themselves to be less sensitive, or pretending they're not affected when their kid is, well, kind of a know-it-all. Parents get to be real people in their relationships with their kids. With an eye, of course, on the power differential. Of course, of course. But I actually don't think the people listening to this podcast are trying to force their kids to manage their parental feelings. Instead, I think oftentimes parents swing the other way and bury their authentic selves almost entirely. Okay, so before we jump into the question, if what I share here on Middle Years is helpful, I'd love for you to follow the show. It helps more parents find the podcast, and it means these episodes will show up in your feed each week. Let's get into the question. All right, this mom asks, My middle schooler is 14, and it feels like almost every conversation turns into an argument. He contradicts so many of the things I say, even simple comments or opinions that I'm just sharing to make conversation. It kind of feels like he speaks with so much certainty, almost as if he's trying to prove me wrong or show that he knows more than I do. The hardest part is that it makes me feel a little silly. Like maybe I don't know what I'm talking about, even when I'm just sharing. Sorry, let me start that. Even when I'm just sharing something I heard or making casual conversation, what starts out as light banter suddenly feels adversarial, and I find myself wondering why everything has to become a debate. I've tried asking him to be more mindful of how he talks to us, reminding him that not every thought needs to be said out loud, explaining how it lands for me, and trying to understand his logic. One thing that has helped a little is saying people can have different opinions, and that's okay. And then letting the conversation end there. What makes it worse is directly disagreeing with him because then we're off to the races. One thing I noticed while thinking through this is that I give him a lot of grace because I know middle school is hard and I know he's still learning, but sometimes I realize I don't feel like I receive much grace in return, and that hurts. What I really want is to have conversations that help me know him better. I'd love to hear about his experiences, his fears, his dreams, and what he's thinking about. But when I ask those kinds of questions, I usually get, I don't know, or one-word answers. Yet if I make a casual comment about almost anything, he's quick to jump in with the opposite opinion or play devil's advocate. Why does he do this? Is this just part of being a middle schooler? And how can I help him learn that he can share his thoughts without every conversation feeling like a battle? Oh, there is so much tenderness in this question. This mom is not asking how to win an argument. She's asking how to stop feeling like her son's opponent. She wants to know him. She wants conversations that help her understand his inner world. And instead, frustratingly, the easiest way to get him talking seems to be saying something he can disagree with. So before we go any further, I want to hold two things at once as I talk directly to this mom. Number one, I don't think your son is waking up wondering how to make you feel small today. And two, I also don't think you should keep absorbing this pattern without addressing it. And I know you've already tried. So both things are true that I don't think he's trying to hurt you. And I don't think that either of you really want this to continue. We can understand what may be happening for him and still help him learn a different way to be in conversation with you. So let's start there. What may be happening developmentally? Middle schoolers are learning a lot of skills all at once, and those skills do not develop evenly. A child can be incredibly articulate, quick thinking, and knowledgeable in one moment, and still very much a beginner when it comes to reading the emotional temperature of a conversation. He may notice the accuracy of an idea before he notices the person in front of him. He may hear you say something and immediately think, that's not exactly right. I know something about this. There's another side to that. And the thought comes out before he has asked himself whether this is a conversation that needs correcting. Some middle schoolers have very fast thoughts and kind of slow breaks. They notice the point they want to make before they notice the face across from them. He may also interpret a casual comment as an invitation to analyze. You may be thinking, I'm just chatting with my son. He may be thinking, Great, we're discussing an idea. You may experience disagreement as tension. He may experience it as engagement. In fact, he may think the conversation is going well because he is participating, contributing, and fully invested in what is being said. Meanwhile, you may feel that the conversation has gone badly because you no longer feel like a person actually in it. You feel like a position he is trying to defeat. That mismatch, it really matters. He may also miss the moment when your expression changes. He may not notice that your tone has shifted from playful to uncomfortable, or he may notice it only after you're already frustrated and trying to end the conversation. That does not mean he does not care. It may mean the skill of tracking another person's experience is still developing. And there's another layer here. When you try to talk to him about how he is coming across, he may not hear, mom is helping me with relational skills. He may hear, there is something wrong with me, or mom doesn't like the way I think, or even I'm too much again. That can make him defensive before he has had a chance to take in what you are actually saying. This is important because middle schoolers want to be good. They want to be close to their parents, even when their behavior makes that hard to see. So when feedback touches shame or rejection, they may protect themselves by arguing the feedback too. Now you are no longer talking about the original pattern, you are debating whether the pattern exists. And it's off to the races again. I also wasn't surprised by this part of your question. You said that when you ask about his fears, dreams, or feelings, you get, I don't know. But if you make a casual observation, suddenly he has 20 minutes worth of opinions. That actually makes developmental sense. Talking about himself is incredibly vulnerable. Talking about ideas feels much safer. One requires emotional exposure, the other lets him feel competent. So don't assume the debating means he isn't interested in connecting with you. It may actually be one of the ways he's trying to connect right now in these years. Our job isn't to shut that down, it's to help him learn how to bring that same energy into a conversation that also leaves room for the other person. There may be something else happening underneath the correcting. It may give him a quick feeling of competence. For a moment, he gets to know something, defend something, prove a point, feel mentally powerful. And that can be especially appealing during a stage of life when so much feels uncertain. His body is changing, his social world is complicated, adults are still making most of the decisions. He is old enough to want authority, but not old enough to have much of it. So being the person who knows the answer, sees the flaw, or has the stronger argument may give him a small place to feel solid. It may be his way of saying, notice me. I know things too. My mind matters here. That does not mean he is consciously trying to establish dominance over you, and it does not mean every correction comes from insecurity. It simply gives us another possible story besides he is trying to disrespect me. That matters because the story we tell ourselves shapes the way we respond. If you believe he is trying to diminish you, you will naturally defend yourself. If you wonder whether he is trying to feel capable, you can stay more curious and still hold the boundary. Because understanding the need does not mean allowing the behavior to keep hurting the relationship. We can make room for his growing mind without letting every conversation become a contest. One thing that really stood out to me in your question, you weren't asking how do I stop these arguments? You were saying, I'd really like to know my son. That tells me something really important. Your deepest longing isn't agreement, it's connection. And that's exactly why this hurts. So before we talk about what to say to your son, I want to spend a minute talking about you because your hurt isn't incidental. It's shaping what happens next. Whenever we find ourselves getting activated by something our child does, I think it helps to ask ourselves three simple questions. What happened? In this case, he corrected me again. What did I feel? Maybe I felt small, I felt dismissed, I felt embarrassed, I felt irritated. Those feelings make sense. You're a human in a real relationship with your child. Of course, repeated correction affects you. And then there's one more question. What meaning did my nervous system make? Maybe it sounds like he thinks I'm foolish. Nothing I say has value. I'm not respected in my own family. Now I want to be really careful here. That last part, when we think about the story our nervous system may be making, it contains something important. Sometimes moments like these touch something older. Maybe being misunderstood has always been tender for you. Maybe competence became one of the ways you learned to feel secure. Maybe you've spent much of your life being the capable one. And it feels especially painful when someone you love repeatedly treats you like you don't know what you're talking about. You do not need to solve your entire childhood before you talk to your son, but you do need to know when your history has entered the room. Because this isn't about convincing yourself, hey, this shouldn't bother me. This is not about becoming less sensitive or pretending you're above being hurt. It's becoming honest enough to say, yeah, this does sting. And I want to address it without making my son responsible for healing every old hurt this touches. I think one of the most beautiful things about parenting middle schoolers and teenagers is that there is finally room in the relationship for more honesty about who we are as parents. Not because the power dynamic has disappeared. It has not. You are still the parent. Your feelings are never your child's responsibility. And I know this mom understands that, but relationships are built by people who care about each other's experience. And parents are having a real experience as they parent their children. Parents do not have to become martyrs in the name of good parenting. We get to be real people too. We get to say, something happened between us, and I'd like to help you understand what it was like for me. Not because we're asking our kids to take care of us, because we're teaching them one of the most important relational skills they'll ever learn. That the people we love have an inner world too. Okay, I want to pause here because I think there are parents listening who are wondering, okay, Bridget, but am I just too sensitive? And I actually kind of think that's the wrong question. There isn't one right way to be a human. Some people genuinely enjoy debating ideas. They leave those conversations energized. Other people experience constant correction as disconnecting. Neither nervous system is wrong, neither personality or temperament is wrong. Part of being in an important relationship is learning about each other. Learning, oh, this feels playful to you, or this feels hurtful to you. When we can do this without shame, that's such a healthy way to engage in a relationship. So I don't actually think your sensitivity is the problem. I think your sensitivity is information. It's telling you something important about what helps you feel connected and what doesn't. The work isn't becoming less sensitive. The work is becoming honest enough to say, I've learned something about myself. This particular pattern doesn't feel good to me. I'd like us to find a different way. That is not being dramatic. That is not asking your child to manage your emotions. That is inviting someone you love to know you better. And that's one of the gifts of parenting older kids. There is finally room in the relationship for that kind of honesty. By the way, if someone comes to mind as we're talking about this, would you please send them this episode? Parenting middle schoolers can feel incredibly lonely sometimes. And my hope is that these conversations help more parents feel understood and supported. Okay, let's look at what this mom has already tried and why what she's tried hasn't changed the pattern yet. As I read your question, I keep thinking, you have actually tried a lot of really thoughtful things. You've asked him to be more mindful, you've explained how it lands for you, you've tried to understand his logic. None of those are bad ideas. I think they all come from a place of wanting connection. I just wonder if they haven't been specific enough for what he's still learning. For example, when we say be more mindful of how you talk to us, that requires a surprising amount of self-awareness. He has to notice the moment, notice your face, notice your tone, pause himself, and then know what to do instead. Those are a lot of skills happening at once. Or when we say not every thought needs to be said out loud, what he may hear is the way your brain works is too much. Or your thoughts are annoying. I know that's not what you mean, but it may be what he hears. You also mentioned explaining how it lands for you. I actually think that's incredibly important. But if that conversation happens when the two of you are already debating something, he's probably hearing it as another correction. His brain immediately starts defending himself. That's not what I meant. I was just talking. You're taking it the wrong way. Now the conversation has become about whether you're allowed to feel hurt instead of helping him understand why this matters. And then you mentioned trying to understand his logic. Again, I love your heart here, but I wonder if that accidentally keeps the debate going. You think you're moving toward relationship. He thinks you're still discussing ideas, so the pattern keeps getting reinforced. I don't actually think your son needs more insight into his own thinking. I think he needs clearer skill teaching. He needs you to help him notice, oh, this is a moment where my interesting thoughts starts making the other person feel like they aren't really part of the conversation anymore. That's a different skill than knowing facts. It's a relational skill. And the beautiful thing is relational skills can be taught. So that's exactly what we're going to do next. If this mom were sitting across from me and I were coaching her, I wouldn't start by talking about respect. I would tell her to start by saying, you need oh, wait. Sorry, Gwenny, I gotta start that section again. Okay, so go back to if I were sitting across from this mom. If I were sitting across from this mom and coaching her, I wouldn't suggest that she start by talking about respect. And I wouldn't suggest she just flat out say, I need you to stop correcting me. I would encourage her to start talking to her son about the relationship. So maybe it sounds something like this there's something I'd love to work on together. Before I say anything else, I want you to know you are not in trouble. I love that you're curious. I love that you think deeply. I love that you have opinions. I don't want to raise someone who never disagrees with me. Then I'd make the shift. I've noticed a pattern between us. A lot of times when I make a casual comment, it turns into you correcting me or taking the opposite side. I honestly don't think you're trying to put me down. And I also want you to know something about me. This is the part I think is so important. This is where, because we're parenting older kids, we get to be a little more honest about who we are. Again, he's not responsible for your emotions. The power structure hasn't changed. You're still the parent, but healthy relationships make room for two people. As our kids get older, they become more capable of caring about another person's experience. So instead of saying you always make me feel bad, which I know you are not saying, you can say something like, I've learned something about myself. When conversations become a lot of correcting or a lot of debating, it actually kind of stings for me. Someone else might experience that differently, but this is how I experience it. I love this because it teaches something bigger than manners. There isn't one right way to be a human, right? You are not wrong for being stung in those moments. Part of being in an important relationship is learning each other. Learning things like, oh, that's something that's tender for you. Wait, let me say that sentence again, Gony. Learning something like, oh, that's something that's tender for you, or that's good to know. I actually think that's a gift we offer when we let people know more about us. We make it possible for them to love us better. So you might say, I'm telling you this because our relationship is important to me. I don't think you're trying to hurt me, and I also know myself, and I know that this particular pattern really stings. I do not want to stop hearing your ideas. Full stop. I promise. I just want us to figure out a way to have conversations that feel good for both of us. That is such a different conversation than trying to convince him he's wrong. You're simply inviting him to know, and that's what you wanted from him in the first place, to know him and to be known by him. That's a real relationship. Then I get curious, not with huge questions like, what's going on for you? Sometimes that's too much for a kid to sort out. And ask things that actually help us understand how his brain is working. So maybe like when I make a comment, does it feel like I'm asking what you think? When you disagree with me, does it feel like you're correcting me or does it feel like you're adding to the conversation? When I tell you it feels argumentative, what do you hear me saying about you? Do you notice when I'm starting to feel uncomfortable, or does that seem to surprise you? And you don't need to ask all of four of those questions at once, but those are the types of questions that can help you dig in a bit more. The answers are going to tell you so much more than any debate ever could. There's one more thing I would do before asking him to practice something different. I would tell him what I already believe about him because middle schoolers are so quick to hear feedback as I'm disappointing you, or you don't like who I am. So I suggest that you be really clear. I think you're thoughtful. I think your brain moves quickly. I think your brain notices things other people miss. I think you have interesting ideas and I genuinely want to hear them. I see how much you care. Then add something like, I also think you're still learning something that's so normal. At this age, we and even with me. Wait, Gwinny, sorry, I gotta start that over. Then you can add, I also think you're still learning something. You're still learning how to notice the moment when sharing your thought might be starting to make another person feel smaller. That's a skill, not a character flaw. What you're really teaching isn't don't disagree with people. It it's teaching how do I stay connected while I disagree? How do I share what I think without accidentally making the other person feel dismissed? How do I make room for my own voice and make room for theirs too? I think one of the most powerful things you can say is this I'm not asking you to make yourself smaller. I'm asking you to make room for the other person in the conversation too. Because that's What healthy relationships look like. Not one person disappearing, not one person winning, two people making room for each other. So give him something to do instead. Once you have named the pattern, the next step is not simply telling him to stop. He needs replacement skills because stop correcting me tells him what not to do, but it does not tell him how to stay engaged when he genuinely has a different thought. And you don't want him learning my opinion. Wait, let me start that over again. And you don't want him making the story about himself being my opinion are a problem. You want him learning here, there are ways to share my opinion that protect relationships. So I would give him a small menu of phrases that maybe he can practice. Instead of jumping straight into that's wrong, he could try, that's interesting. I heard something different, or do you want to know what I think? Or he could say, Can I push back on that? Or simply, I see it another way. He could even ask, are we just chatting or do you want to debate this? That question even may sound a little funny, but it actually teaches him something so important. Not every conversation has the same purpose. Sometimes people are exchanging ideas, sometimes they are thinking out loud, sometimes they are looking for connection, not analysis. Part of relational maturity is learning to notice the difference and asking if you're not sure. I would also teach him three questions to ask himself. In the moment, he can quickly ask himself, is the other person still enjoying this? Did they ask me to correct or analyze what they said? And help him be honest with himself. Am I trying to connect, contribute, or win? He will not remember to ask himself all three every time. And that is okay. This is skill building, not a test, but you're helping him create that pause between the thought and the response. And from your side, I would choose one or two phrases together before the next difficult conversation. Maybe you could say something like, I'm not available for debate right now, or I'm sharing, I'm not asking to be corrected, or you can have a different opinion. I'm going to let this conversation rest. And finally, you could even say, I want to hear you, but not in the way that turns me into the opponent. The exact words matter less than agreeing on them ahead of time. Wait, let me start that over again, Gwenny. The exact way you say that matters less than kind of coming up with some phrases ahead of time. Because if you suddenly say something like, I'm done with this in the middle of an argument, he again may experience it as rejection or punishment. But if you talked in advance and you may even share, hey, these are the types of things I'm going to say in the conversation when it is feeling like it's becoming contentious, then it becomes a shared language. It means we are in the pattern again. Let's interrupt it before we hurt each other. That is not shutting him down. That is helping both of you stay in the relationship. And I would keep the in mo, sorry, I need to start that sentence again. And I would keep the in the moment correction brief. No need for a long explanation, no reteaching the entire lesson. You can even just say, oh, that's the correcting pattern, or oh, try that again in a way that makes room for me. Then give him a chance to repair the sentence. That's where the learning is going to happen. I also want to prepare you for the possibility that the first conversation that does not feel warm and connected, he may get defensive. He may say, I'm not doing it, or you just don't like being wrong. And what I'm saying here is even in the calm moment where you're bringing this up to him, he may even say something like, So I'm not even allowed to have an opinion, or the classic, fine, I just won't talk anymore. That does not necessarily mean that this conversation went badly. He may hear rejection before he can hear about. Let me start that sentence again. He may hear rejection before he can hear skill building. He may hear mom does not like the way I think, I'm disappointing her again, or the way I talk is a problem. When that happens, your job is not to prove the pattern, pull out examples from the last six months, or convince him that his interpretation. Wait, I need to say that again. Sorry, waiting. When that happens, your job is not to prove that the pattern exists, pull out examples from the last six months, or convince him that your interpretation is the correct one. Instead, you can just stay close and clarify. You can say you are absolutely allowed to have an opinion. I want your opinions. I'm talking about how we share them. Or I'm not asking you at all to stop talking. I'm asking us to make our conversations feel better for both people. Or you do not have to agree that this Wait, that sounds weird. Okay, let me say that again. Or you do not have to agree with what I'm saying, but I do need you to care that this is my experience. That's such an important distinction. But he does not have to decide that you're objectively right. He does not have to experience the conversation the same way you do, and I think that's actually what's happening, but he should learn that someone he loves can say this affects me, and he can care without arguing them out of their experience. And if he says, fine, I just won't say anything, you can respond again. That's not what I want. I want to know what you think. We are working on how to share it, not whether you get to share it. And I would say this very directly this is not a talk about whether you are good. You are good. This is a skill we are going to practice. That line matters. Um, sorry, but I'm doing a pause here because I feel like this is a little repetitive. Again, middle schoolers want to be good with their parents. They want to feel close to us, and sometimes feedback gets tangled up with shame so quickly that they cannot separate. I did something that affected the relationship from there is something wrong with me. As his loving parent, you can help separate those things. You are not bad, your brain is not bad, your opinions are not bad, and this way of entering a conversation is creating distance between us. So we're gonna work on it. That is such steady leadership there. You as his mom are not abandoning the truth because he feels uncomfortable, and you are not abandoning him while he learns that he can hear it and you two can still stay close. This is not about getting your son to agree with you more, and I know that's not at all what you are asking. And it's not about raising a child who is deferential, quiet, or afraid to challenge an idea. Again, nowhere in your question did you say that. It's about helping your son learn I can be intelligent without making someone feel foolish. I can disagree without turning the other person into my opponent. I can notice that my intent was harmless and still care about my impact. I can receive feedback without deciding I am bad. Those are lifelong relationship skills. And I want to point out there may be an opportunity for growth here for you too. Your work as his mom is not to make yourself smaller so that there is unlimited room for his growing mind. That is a weird way to say it, Gwenny. I think I think I want to just cut that. Okay. So after or, and there may be an opportunity for growth here for you too. Cut the next part, and then your growth edge may be learning. I can make room for my son's strong opinions without disappearing from the relationship. I can be honest about how something affects me without making him responsible for my emotional well-being. I can stay curious about what is happening for him and still say, this pattern does not feel good to me. That is what makes this such an important moment. This stops being a story about a teenager who argues too much. It becomes a story about two people learning how to remain visible to each other. He gets to learn to be thoughtful. No, that's not right. I need to start that again. He gets to be thoughtful and have opinions. You get to be compassionate about your own sensitivity. He gets to have a fast-moving mind. You get to say when he. I need to start that again. You get to say when the way he enters a conversation stings for you. There is not one right to way to be a human. There is not one correct level of sensitivity. The answer is never for either of you to become less yourselves. There's simply two people in an important relationship learning what helps them stay connected. That is what healthy relationships ask of us. Not perfect agreement, not perfect attunement all the time, but the willingness to notice something is happening between us and then come back together and sort it out. You are a human in a real relationship with your child. Relational ruptures are part of real relationships. The work is not to avoid every rupture, it's helping both you and your lorg, I need to start the game. You do not need to try to avoid every rupture. You and your son are both learning how to stay present, tell the truth kindly, and come back to each other. So when this happens again, start small. Name the pattern outside of the moment, tell your child what you genuinely love about the way his mind works, be specific about your own experience, teach one or two replacement phrases, choose a shared cue of what you may say when this happens again, and when he gets defensive, do not turn that into proof that the conversation has failed. Stay steady, clarify, and come back. Your middle schooler does not need a parent who never gets hurt. He needs a parent who can be honest about what being hurt. I need to start again. Sorry. Your middle schooler does not need a parent who never gets hurt. He needs a parent who can be honest about being hurt without making him carry that. He doesn't need a parent who wins every argument. He needs a parent who teaches him how to protect the relationship while still being fully himself. And that is exactly what you're doing here. You are not trying to silence him. You are helping him become someone who can bring his full mind into a relationship without crowding out the other person. You're also showing him that love is not just knowing someone cares about you, it's learning how to care about the experience of the person in front of you. That is how we build a relationship that lasts. And if that's the kind of relationship you, the listener, are working toward with your middle schooler, I have linked my Unbreakable Bond course in the show notes. It is designed to help you create the kind of connection that can hold all of it. The strong opinions, the misunderstandings, the defensiveness, the growing independence, and the return. Because your relationship does not need to be conflict-free to be strong. It needs to be a place where both of you can remain yourselves and still keep finding your way back to each other. Thank you so much to the mom who submitted this question. You are so dear, and your son is so lucky to have you as his mom. If you're enjoying middle years, one of the biggest gifts you can give the show is leaving a quick rating or review wherever you listen. It really does help other middle school parents find these conversations, and I'm so grateful when you take a minute to do that. Remember, you do not need to do this whole middle school parenting thing perfectly. You just need to keep coming back to the relationship with your kiddo. I am looking forward to being with you next week. I think that's it.