When parents and teenagers argue, parents usually imagine something has gone terribly wrong - that they’ve failed as parents or their teenagers are especially awful.
In fact, while teenage/parent conflict can clearly get out of hand and be a worry, it’s actually perfectly normal for parents and their children not to see eye to eye during the teenage years.
Teenagers need to separate from their parents and to do so will often say and do things they know will upset them. These disagreements can be painful because they tell parents that they are growing old and that their children may soon no longer need them. Faced with the demands and protests of a teenager in the throes of adolescence, parents may feel overwhelmed and find themselves drawn into arguments, reacting like teenagers themselves, rather than as parents or adults. Parents need to know they are not alone and that most families with teenagers go through the same difficulties.