My sister is going through the prime of her adolescent years. These years have been both amazing and exhausting. As I read through this book, I find some things that Seigel says a little too scary accurate. I appreciated the way he showed us the hand model when identifying the different parts of the brain. This was an easier way for me to remember all the different parts of the brain and how the connect with each other. The brain has always amazed me with the different functions it has, the awesome things it can do, and the overwhelming information it can hold. I don't think I truly understood how big of an impact the development of the brain has on teenagers. These different developments or "remodeling" of the brain makes perfect sense. Like remodeling a house, they are redoing and rethinking everything that they have grown up thinking. Teenagers are finding a new sense of self. This development and change in life is experienced differently for all adolescents.
There is this new(ish) app/game to play on your phone called FriendO. I play this game with my teenage sister daily. One of the questions my sister had to answer on this app was, "My parents don't understand why..." then the app proceeded to give her 4 different answers to choose from.
a. Why I dress the way I do.
b. Why I text my friends all the time.
c. Why I listen to the music I do.
d. all of the above.
My sister answered d. all of the above. I immediately thought of this book when I saw that she answered that. My sister is all sorts of hilarious, spunky, fun, caring, loving, compassionate, and so much more. Towards the end of this chapter, I appreciated the explanation behind the emotions and vulnerability of the teenager. For me, I can tell my sister gets more defensive and emotional when someone criticizes what she is doing or who she is. I like how Seigel states this isn't a sign of immaturity but a crucial part of human development. My sister is still finding who she is and that is a beautiful process. But, I can't wait for her to be a couple years older and truly understand the all sorts of amazing she is and can be.
I can relate to your sister and I am sure you can too. Its crazy how much the brain can come up with new ideas and ways to create a new way of thinking. I too always wondered why my parents never understood the things I did. Great post!
ReplyDeleteVery relatable post. There are so many things that my parents don't understand about me and the things that I do. I think a lot of people our age and younger can relate to this, specifically when talking about technology. Great post!
ReplyDeleteSounds like you're a great big sister:) I'll have to download the app to see if any of the teens I work with would benefit from expressing themselves in a similar way!
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