One way to make someone feel valued is to show interest in them: who they are, what they’ve experienced, and what they think about. Asking your mom about her life will offer you the chance to connect with her, and will make her feel happy that you’re interested in what she has to say.  For example, if you’re just hanging out in the living room, you could turn to your mom and ask her what her favorite thing to do was as a little girl. You’ll probably get a few interesting stories this way! Research even shows that families who share stories about their family history have closer bonds, and the children in those families tend to have more self-confidence. Asking your mom to talk about her history will benefit you both. Moms are just like anyone else: they need people to talk to. Asking your mom how she’s feeling shows that you’re paying attention to her and that you care about her happiness; that will probably make her very happy.  For example, if you notice that she seems stressed, you could say something like this: “You seem really stressed right now, Mom. Are you okay?” Asking your mom about her day is another good way to engage with her. She probably asks you about what you did that day; why not return the favor? Even small acts of kindness have big payoffs. Sending your mom a quick text during the day says you’re thinking about her, and will make her feel appreciated and special. The more people feel cared for, the happier they tend to be. You don’t have to write a novel to make an impact. Even a short “Hi Mom! I hope your day is going well” is enough to show that you care about your mom’s happiness. Sometimes it’s really hard to apologize to your mom, especially if you feel like she’s on your case a lot. However, apologizing when you’re wrong and taking responsibility for your actions will strengthen your relationship and make your mom feel loved.  Good apologies incorporate the “3 R’s”: regret, responsibility, and remedy. This means you:  Express regret for the hurt you caused. Take responsibility for your actions, without making excuses. Offer a remedy; a suggestion for what you’ll do differently next time.   For example, if your mom points out that you forgot to take out the trash again, say something like “I’m sorry I forgot to take out the trash. I know that meant more work for you. I’ll put a reminder in my phone for Wednesdays so I remember next time.” It can sometimes feel like your mom is your best friend one day and your prison warden the next. Instead of just thinking to yourself Why can't she do it?, try imagining what it would be like to be in her position. Exercising your empathy muscles isn't just good for your mom, it's good for you, too.  For example, if she asked you about your day and you shrugged her off instead of talking, that might have hurt her feelings. If you’re too busy to talk at that moment, express that clearly by saying something like “Sorry, but I have a lot of homework to finish right now, Mom. Is it okay if we can talk later?” This shows that you do care about connecting with her, even if you can’t do it right then. Moms can do things that embarrass you; in fact, sometimes it can feel like they specialize in it! Try to imagine why your mom is doing what she’s doing. It could be that she’s babying you because she wants you to feel secure, not because she thinks you’re immature. And hey, you can always ask her why she’s doing what she does. Many moms love to feel involved in their kids’ lives, especially when their kids invite them to share in their feelings and thoughts. If you’ve had a bad day, or you can’t figure out a situation at school, or you have a secret crush and don’t know how to approach him or her, ask your mom for advice. This will help make her feel like you value her opinion. The opposite of this also goes. Even though your mom is probably happy to listen and help you with your issues, you also don’t want the only times you talk to your mom to be when you dump your problems on her. If you’re feeling great about something, have some good news to share, or you just saw a great movie, chat with her about that, too. You probably have a lot of hilarious jokes with your friends, right? Maybe you went to see a movie one time and mispronounced a character’s name, so now it’s funny whenever you bring up that mispronunciation. Having that kind of “secret” humor just between you and your mom will help strengthen your bond and make both of you feel secure and happy in your relationship.
أظهر لوالدتك اهتمامك بها. اسأل والدتك عن شعورها. أرسل لها رسالة نصية سريعة. اعتذر عندما تدرك أنك قد اقترفت شيئًا خاطئًا. ضع نفسك محل والدتك. تحدث إليها عندما تواجه مشاكل. تبادلا بعض النكات السرية والإشارات المشتركة بينكما.