Author Archives: survivingteenyears

Teenage Angst or Mental Health Problem?

Depression, Anxiety, Bipolar, OCD, ODD, ADHD, ADD, what does it all mean? And how can parents know what is typical teenage angst vs. a serious mental health problem? As your sweet baby was growing and developing you probably took him for Well Baby checks and kept track of his weight and height and made sure […]

Teens Have Needs (Wifi Is NOT One Of Them)

Teens have needs! And no, Wifi is not one of them!  Let’s go back to Psychology 101 and look at a theoretical approach to what a parent of a teenager is trying to do every day. Maslow developed a widely used theory of five basic human needs that each person must achieve and master in order […]

Happiness and Gratitude Worksheet for Teens!

Be Happy! Happiness….is it a losing battle for teens? Do we need to just wait it out and hope that someday our teens grow out of their grumpy, crabby, irritable, short tempered stage?  Doesn’t it seem that they live their lives in a persistent state of unhappy? We know that happier people love longer, remain […]

Do You Need One Of These Signs In Your House?

Does your teen smile one minute and roll her eyes the next? Is she chatty and cheerful and then you blink or say the wrong thing and she’s done talking and barely utters a word the rest of the night?  Do you see her as delightful and energetic and a pretty cool person when she […]

Help Your Teen Put Down The Phone…One Hour At A Time!

Is your teen constantly on their phone? If they look up from their phone screen, is it only to watch TV or move to a computer? Ever wonder how many hours a teen spends looking at a screen of some kind? 9 HOURS!  (And that doesn’t count any of the time they are in school) […]

Find Christmas Magic…Even With Your Teens!

Are you feeling kind of blah this year? Having trouble finding the magic of Christmas’ past? Holidays are definitely different with teens.  They may not wake you at 6 am ready to unwrap presents. They may roll their eyes at the gingerbread house decorating. They may even act surly and indifferent this year.  A lot […]