Relationship Advice for Teenagers Who Text but Don't Talk

Face to Face

• If your teen prefers texting to talking, encourage him to increase the face-to-face time in his relationships. Explain that it̵7;s difficult to genuinely get to know anyone without authentic communication. While texting might be a convenient way to contact peers, it lacks important indicators of true emotion, such as inflection, tone, volume and meaningful pauses. Also, certain punctuation, fonts and phrases can be misconstrued, causing unnecessary miscommunication. Using all caps or exclamation points can come off as yelling, and dry humor or sarcasm can make teens seem rude or annoyed. Empathize with your teen if he prefers to text because he̵7;s too shy to call his crush or spend time alone one-on-one. Suggest instead that they go on a group date. At the very least, he̵7;ll create a new experience that they can text about later.

Off-Limits

• If your teen is a serial texter, help him understand that, for the sake of his relationship, certain kinds of conversations are off-limits. Writing on the "Psychology Today" website. licensed professional counselor and author of "The Anger Workbook for Teens," Raychelle Cassada Lohmann, recommends not texting during an argument, as people are often more considerate and in better control of their responses when dealing with each other personally. Also, if your teen texts something out of anger that he later wishes he could take back, a written record of it will still exist. The same rules apply for sending embarrassing or revealing information or pictures. Tell your teen to never, ever text (or email or post, for that matter) anything he doesn̵7;t want the entire world to see. With today̵7;s technology, you can never be sure that the person you send something to is the only person who will see it. Once it̵7;s out there, it̵7;s out there.

Breaking Up

• Explain to your teen that, although ending any relationship -- whether platonic or romantic -- can be awkward and uncomfortable, it should always be done in person. Encourage your teen to resist the urge to break up via text, and show his acquaintances the respect they deserve. Remind him of the golden rule: Always give the same consideration you̵7;d like to receive.

Don't Text and Drive

• Keep your teen safe by constantly reminding him of the dangers of texting and driving. Remind him that driving requires complete and total concentration, and that distracted drivers can cause serious -- and sometimes fatal -- accidents. Tell your teen that if what he has to say is important enough to text while driving, then he should pull over and call the person directly.