There’s a difference between a messy room and a room that has become unmanageable. Clothes on the floor and a few piles of laundry are one thing. But when there are old dishes, food, overflowing trash, and so much stuff on the floor that there’s barely a clear path to the door, we’re talking about s...

You hear the bedroom door close harder than usual and immediately everyone notices.

Someone turns the television down. Someone else decides not to ask a question. You start wondering whether now is really the best time to bring up the dishes, the job application, the money they owe you, or what hap...

One of the biggest reasons parents avoid setting boundaries has very little to do with not knowing what the boundary should be. Most of the time, they already know.

The hard part is imagining what might happen afterward.

The emerging adult in your life may get angry. They might accuse you of not s...

You’ve suggested therapy. They said no.

You found a career counsellor, but they weren’t interested. You sent job postings, and they didn’t apply. You suggested a doctor, a support group, a class, volunteering, going back to school, getting more exercise, trying a new routine, or talking to someone....

When the emerging adult in your life is struggling, helping feels like the most natural thing in the world. You make the phone call they’ve been avoiding, cover the bill because they’re short on money, remind them about the appointment, wake them up for work, or smooth things over when they’ve misse...

Here’s an uncomfortable truth I think some parents need to hear: if you repeatedly tell your emerging adult there will be a consequence you know you won’t follow through on, they probably know it too.

Maybe during an argument you’ve said, “If this keeps happening, you’re going to have to move out.”...