Stop Playing Referee Between Your Teen and Your Partner
Stop Playing Referee Between your Teen and your Partner When tension builds between your teen and your partner—whether it’s a stepparent or biological parent—it’s easy to feel pulled into the middle. You want to keep the peace, protect your kid, and make things better for everyone. But involving yourself not only doesn’t help, but it […]
The Busyness Trap: The Hidden Cost of Overcommitting (for Parents—and Everyone Else)
The Busyness Treadmill: The Hidden Cost of Over-Committing (for Parents—and Everyone Else) Many parents aren’t just busy—they feel like there’s never enough time. The days fill up quickly, and before you know it, you’re stretched thin and running on empty. Not just for a few weeks or months—but for years on end. Sprinting becomes the […]
When your Kid’s Behavior Alarms You: 3 Myths to Let Go Of
When Your Kid’s Behavior Alarms You: 3 Myths to Let Go Of When your kid’s behavior feels alarming—sudden defiance or rudeness toward teachers, patterns of extreme anxiety, or unpredictable emotional outbursts—it’s tempting for your mind to spiral into worst-case conclusions. While your fear and worry is normal, valid, and understandable, you pay a price for […]
Teens and Career Panic: Moving Forward Matters More than Picking the “Right” Path
Teens and Career Panic: Moving Forward Matters More than Picking the “Right” Path At least half of the teens and young adults I work with feel completely paralyzed when it comes to figuring out their future — and their parents feel that stress right alongside them. With so many insecurities swirling at once, clarity feels […]
Vaping in Teens: The Big Conversation Most Parents Aren’t Having
Vaping in Teens: The Big Conversation Most Parents Aren’t Having Vaping and nicotine addiction are quietly affecting teens and young adults at alarming rates—often without you as the parent fully realizing what’s happening. And while your teen may respond to your concerns by dismissing them or minimizing the issue, the truth is they often carry […]
Want your Teen to Listen and Let you In? Stop Over-Spending your ‘Relationship Capital’
Want your Teen to Listen and Let you In? Stop Over-Spending your ‘Relationship Capital’ When it comes to parental concerns around things like screentime, vaping, dating, bad grades, or mental health struggles, you want to be able to give your input and help steer the ship. After all, you’ve been around maybe half a century […]
When your Teen’s Struggles Scare or Overwhelm you: Finding your own Calm in the Storm
When your Teen’s Struggles Scare or Overwhelm You: Finding your own Calm in the Storm When teens are doing badly — emotionally, behaviorally, or mental-health-wise, parents can easily fly into reactive states themselves and lose their own stability. They slip into states of frustration, fear, panic, or a sense of pressure to ‘fix their kid’ […]
Working with Teens with Extreme Behaviors: Making Sense of Them instead of Reacting to Them
Working with Teens with Extreme Behaviors: Making Sense of them instead of Reacting to them I recently trained a therapist who’s worried about her teen client. This client spends most waking hours under her covers. She dropped out of the school play, two sports, and stopped going out with friends. She mentioned another young client […]
The Silent Identity Crisis behind Teen Body Changes
The Silent Identity Crisis behind Teen Body Changes Today’s video is about body image in young people. A lot of my young adult clients used to be thinner as kids or tweens, then feel blindsided when their bodies change during adolescence or as they hit their twenties. Teen bodies change for so many reasons. Their […]
How Letting Go Creates Independent Kids: Parenting Teens with Trust vs Control
How Letting Go Creates Independent Kids: Parenting Teens with Trust vs Control I hear from a lot of parents of teens that struggle with the loss of connection they used to have when their kids were younger. Lack of connection with teens can happen for a number of reasons. Teens consistently struggle with things like […]