Psychotherapy for teens, young adults, families, parents and adults. My approach is warm, collaborative and solution oriented.
I specialize in the following areas:
Teens: Whether teens are facing the most serious threats of depression, self harm, running away and family conflict, or simply dealing with the normal but rocky road through adolescence, I can help. Young Adults: Living at home or not, in college or not, the transition from youth to adulthood is one of the most significant developmental milestones in life. I
03/28/2023
3 False Parenting Assumptions That Push Your Teen Away - Raising Teens Today At a time when we should be drawing our kids closer, it's easy to create a divide. Here are 3 parenting assumptions that push your teen away.
02/21/2023
“Teenagers are organized around the drive toward autonomy. They’d rather not be subjected to an adult’s agenda. When we ask them questions at times that work well for us, we’re asking them to cooperate with our agenda. We need to be open to the possibility that a teenager may be most forthcoming when they are the ones who initiate the conversation.”
Teens Are Struggling Right Now. What Can Parents Do? The psychologist Lisa Damour shares advice on how to connect, what healthy emotions look like and when to step in.
04/23/2022
This is an excellent article, with many strong points including, “But I think Twenge’s strongest point is misunderstood. Social media isn’t like rat poison, which is toxic to almost everyone. It’s more like alcohol: a mildly addictive substance that can enhance social situations but can also lead to dependency and depression among a minority of users.”
Why American Teens Are So Sad — The Atlantic Four forces are propelling the rising rates of depression among young people.
02/23/2022
Listening does not mean giving in or supporting angry behavior. Listening builds connection and emotional regulation skills.
02/04/2022
Teen girls have been especially impacted during the pandemic. “Mean weekly emergency-department visits for suspected su***de attempts rose 50.6% among 12-to-17-year-old girls in the month ended March 20, 2021, compared with the same period in 2019, according to CDC data. “.
What Parents Can Do When Kids Have Suicidal Thoughts — The Wall Street Journal New research is uncovering warning signs that might indicate whether a child is more likely to act on those thoughts
01/10/2022
Great message!
12/22/2021
“While concerned adults may feel the temptation to surreptitiously monitor and police their children’s online activity, building trust and setting the example of healthy habits is a more viable route. Research supports that parents’ own use of digital technology (rather than their attitudes) is determinant of how their children will engage with the technology, and increased screen time by children is linked to higher screen use by their parents.”
How parents and educators can support healthy teen use of social media - MindShift Social media often gets a bad reputation for its effects on adolescent brains. However, there are upsides to connecting with others, plus opportunities to model digital media literacy, according to this guide.
12/16/2021
How do we get kids to change their behavior? Psychological science tells us that celebrating wins works better than penalizing mistakes.
Here are some no-cost ideas for rewards when kids are getting it right:
- Tell them you think they're terrific.
- Warmly thank kids when they're helpful.
- Consider saying, "I'm so proud of you, and you should feel so proud of yourself."
What other ideas come to mind? Let me know in the comments!
05/25/2021
Hack your brain!
04/11/2021
“The biggest driver of child well-being during Covid is how parents are functioning, according to a survey of nearly 500 parents with children ages 8 to 17, conducted by Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio.”
Loneliness, Anxiety and Loss: the Covid Pandemic’s Terrible Toll on Kids — The Wall Street Journal A year of school shutdowns and family trauma leads to social isolation, stress and mental-health issues.
03/31/2021
Find ways to connect with your tween or teen in fun, low-key ways. Goof around, try that new TikTok dance together, share a funny meme. “Spend a lot of time talking with them about nothing,” Duffy advises. “You want to be this soft place where your kids can come to regress a little bit and reorient themselves.”
Parents can make a plan to decrease su***de risk in their teens. Here’s how. What you can do to combat the epidemic of anxiety, depression and su***de in teens.