Fostering Independence

By fostering creativity in your child, you can help her mature mentally, emotionally, and socially. As a child grows, her imagination is tamed by society's constricting rules, pressures, and do's and don'ts. Creative freedom is essential in helpi...

Preparing Your Child to Leave the Nest By the time a child is ready to move out of the house, either to college or to an apartment across town, it's important that she be prepared with the skills she will need. There are a number of basic areas ...

You know that teaching your child age-appropriate life skills is important for self-care and independence, but how, exactly, do you go about doing this? Follow these tips to help your child become more self-sufficient, and help him learn the skil...

Take this short quiz to see if you are an overprotective mother. ...

Your child may be old enough to live on her own, but is she truly ready? Take our quiz to find out whether she's prepared. ...

Your Son's Life Skills and Independence You may think you've heard all there is to hear about the importance of life skills, but the concept takes on a new urgency when your son announces that he's ready to move out. It becomes even more urgent...

When Daughters Turn into Mothers Perhaps the biggest change in many mother-daughter relationships comes when the daughter has her first child. Assistant professor of human development at Penn State University Karen Fingerman said age strengthens...

Is your teen prepared to be the architect of his own future? Take this quiz and find out! ...

Take this quiz to find out if you're helping or hindering your child's journey toward self-sufficiency. ...

Do you give your child enough space to learn, to play, to create? Take our quiz and find out. ...

When Parents Feel Separation Anxiety by Maya CohenSeparation anxiety isn't just for kids. A lot of parents feel acutely nervous when their child begins school or leaves for summer camp. You may worry about your child's adjustment, or just miss s...

Mothers and Adult Daughters: Is It Possible to Have a Friendship? Don't worry if you and your daughter aren't friends now. Therapist Dr. Susan Gordon works mostly with women trying to negotiate relationships with important people in their lives...

Getting Along with an Aging Mom Researcher Alexis J. Walker asserts that caregiving for a parent does not develop suddenly after an era of intergenerational independence and the onset of need. Rather there are many examples of assistance given ...

What Most Adult Daughters Think About Mom Woman to Woman It might be helpful to remember that moms, like all women, are in particular need of their daughters' support and comfort during periods of stress. For those who want to know what their y...

Understanding the Smothering Mother Roni Cohen-Sandler, Ph.D., uses the term "Monster Mothers." These are women who are abusive, neglectful, and intolerable of a daughter's individuality. They fail to be empathetic during teen years and are un...

Overprotective Moms: The Fix-It Fixation A lot of moms have this fixation. The fix-it fixation is the uncontrollable urge to eradicate your child's pain, whether it is real or created by your imagination. The need to fix something is brought on...

How to Keep Your Nose Out of Your Daughter's House Dr. Charney Herst, author of For Mothers of Difficult Daughters (Villard, 1998) believes, "If you want to share a marital coping strategy with your daughter every now and then, that's fine. But ...

Moms and Their Young Adult Daughters: Generations in Conflict According to research, the primary difference that separates mothers and daughters is the younger generation's "social and psychological freedom to defer motherhood" and develop their...