A Day in the Life of a Teen or Young Adults Struggling with Social Skills
Imagine this: It’s lunchtime, and you’re sitting by yourself on the playground. You have your lunch in front of you, but no one’s coming over to sit with you. You look around at the other kids, laughing, playing, and sharing stories, and you wonder why no one notices you sitting there alone. You want to join in, but you’re not sure how, and it feels like nobody would want you there anyway.
Or maybe this has happened: You hear everyone talking about the big birthday party over the weekend. But the thing is, you didn’t get an invitation. It feels like a punch in the stomach—why didn’t they invite you? What did you do wrong? You don’t want to ask, but the hurt lingers. Everyone else is going, so why not you?
Some days, it’s worse than that. Maybe you’re the kid who’s getting bullied—called names, pushed around, or teased about things that shouldn’t even matter. You try to ignore it, but it still hurts, and no matter what you do, it keeps happening. You tell yourself you’ll stand up for yourself next time, but when next time comes, you feel too small, too scared.
And then, one day, you go to school and see your ‘friends.’ You smile, ready to hang out, but then one of them says, “Go away, we’re not your friend anymore.” Just like that. You don’t understand what’s changed, and the rejection feels like a huge, heavy weight on your chest.
For parents reading this, can you imagine how confusing and painful these moments are for your child?
These experiences happen far more often than we realise, and sometimes our children or teens just don’t know how to handle them or how to talk about it.
But here’s the good news: Things don’t have to stay this way.
What if There Was a Way to Change the Story?
What if, instead of sitting alone at lunch, your child had the confidence to walk over to a group of kids and start a conversation?
What if, when they didn’t get invited to that birthday party, they knew how to handle their feelings and still felt okay about themselves?
What if, when bullies came around, they had the tools to stand up for themselves and knew that they weren’t alone in facing those challenges?
And what if they could avoid misunderstandings with friends by understanding the social rules that sometimes feel like a mystery?
Here’s How We Can Help:
The PEERS® Program teaches all of these skills and more. It’s not magic—it’s learning how to make friends, handle tough situations, and feel better about social interactions. Here’s what we focus on:
Building Social Confidence – Your young person will learn step-by-step how to approach people, start conversations, and make lasting friendships.
Understanding Social Rules – Sometimes, unwritten rules make things confusing. We help teens and young adults understand these rules so they can avoid social mistakes and fit in more easily.
Self-Monitoring for Social Errors – Your young person will learn how to notice when they’ve made a social misstep and how to correct it, reducing feelings of anxiety and helping them feel more in control of their interactions.
Imagine the difference these skills could make. Your child could go from feeling alone and misunderstood to feeling confident and capable of making friends and navigating social challenges.
Parents, this is the beginning of a brighter story for your child. Together, we can help them change their experiences, one step at a time.