Dad Struggles to Find Things to Talk About with His Teen Girls. Now, He’s Worried He’s ‘Losing’ Them

A dad has turned to the parenting subreddit for guidance on how to stay connected with his daughters as they move deeper into their teenage and young adult years.

In his post, the original poster (OP) shared that he’s the father of two girls, ages 16 and 19. He stressed that nothing is “wrong” with his daughters or their relationship — in fact, he said they’re “my everything.”

“There’s nothing wrong — no fights [or] no drama. They are both incredibly happy and successful and mature and just plain wonderful,” he wrote. “They are just growing away.”

OP went on to describe how his relationships with each daughter have naturally shifted over time.

“I hardly talk to the 19 year old while she’s away at college but she talks to my wife at least daily, usually multiple times,” he said. “We do talk sports (we’re both big football fans) but that’s kinda it.”

As for his younger daughter, her busy schedule means he doesn’t see as much of her as he used to.

“The younger one is either at school, at work, in her room, or out with friends or her boyfriend,” he explained. “I’ve been trying to get back in the habit of having dinner together, that kinda faded away after her big sister went to college.”

OP said his connection with his 16-year-old feels “much better” simply because she’s still at home. With his college-age daughter, though, he often feels at a loss for what to say.

“I ask about her classes, but she doesn’t want to talk to me about friends or boys or clothes or social stuff like she does with her mom. I don’t want to pry, so I just ask what’s going on and how things are and she says ‘fine,’ ” he shared.

What he really misses, he admitted, is the closeness they had when his daughters were younger.

“I miss my little girl(s) and I’m not sure how to fix it, or if it’s just part of growing up and I just need to let it go knowing they’ll come back around someday.”

In the comments, many Reddit users reassured him that what he’s experiencing is both common and normal — and that his steady presence still matters more than he realizes.

“I grew up always having a great relationship with my dad. He was my best friend. When I got to adulthood, I loved him just as much but life certainly got in the way,” one commenter wrote. “But listen, I’m 29 years old now and my dad told me they’re about to release a new Stargate series, and I cried.”

They continued, “I got so emotional about it. Why? Because it meant that I will have a reason to come over once a week and watch Sci-fi with my dad like we did every Friday while I was growing up.”

The commenter also reminded OP that his daughters are in a major transition period.

“Your daughters are in a weird place of trying to find where they belong in the world as women. Just keep that contact the best you can, and they’ll come back.”