On the next pages, you will see several things that your teen might say. Read each statement carefully and then:
1) See if you can identify how the teen is feeling, and
2) Come up with a response that accurately reflects the teen’s feelings and the underlying message
Example:
Teen says: “Amanda always gets new clothes and I have to wear old, junky hand-me-downs.”
Empathic Response: “You feel bad because you have to wear second hand clothes. You wish you could have new clothes too.”
In this example the feeling that the teen’s statement communicates is that she feels bad and the underlying message is that she wants new clothes too. Remember an empathic response contains both the feeling and the underlying message.