Times have been pressing for families everywhere, causing a strain felt hardest in the already-tense relationship between teenagers and their parents. I have seen countless articles on how to ease that strain on mommy blogs all over the internet, but I have yet to see one written from the perspective of a teen. Why are we listening to only one side? We shouldn’t. So, I, a local teen, wrote this article.

The most important thing to remember is that empathy is key. Your teen is under a lot of stress. They may find ways to blow off stress you don’t approve of, like playing loud games online, staying up all night to talk to friends, and planning a violent overthrow of our current corrupt capitalist system. Although these behaviors might be punishable under normal circumstances, they already have adults criticizing their every move. Imagine having teachers hounding you for work, people of older generations seeing you as a disgrace, and a team of FBI agents tracking your every move. Now throw a disapproving parent into the mix. Sounds like a nightmare, doesn’t it? Don’t do that to your child.

The best action you can take is to support your teen’s hobbies. If they want to game professionally, don’t tell them that you are disappointed, or that what they want is stupid. Support them, let them play, and offer encouragement when they need it. Offer them a ride to their protests, buy them the gasoline for their Molotov cocktails, and provide an alibi. What’s even better is taking an active interest in what they are doing. Ask them how to play Fortnite, or when they realized the myth of “rags to riches” was used to keep the poor complicit. Or, if you’re feeling extra confident, what the tea is in the group chat. Who knows, they might want to tell you. Give your teen space. You hear this tip all the time, and I understand it can be hard, but I cannot overstate how important it is. You don’t need to know everything going on in our lives. Our teen years are when we blossom on our own and choose who we want to become.

But support is key when giving your teen space. How could we move to college without your help? How would we have the confidence to go out on our own? When the time comes to leave and lead our guerilla insurgency, make sure we know you’ll always love us, no matter how much collateral damage we do in our fight for freedom. Civilian deaths can weigh heavily on the liberated soul, and your support can mean the difference between giving up and success.

And parents, just remember, when all is said and done, and it is time to right your wrongs and build on the ashes of the previous society, you’ll want me to put in a good word for you.

You have nothing to lose but your chains.