In the past two years every major organization dedicated to adolescent health and development has sounded the alarm on mental health. The latest CDC data describes the crisis in detail. In 2021, more than four in ten students felt persistently sad or hopeless and nearly one-third experienced poor mental health. In the wake of this… Read More →
“There is nothing to do,” my youngest kid wailed again. In case we hadn’t heard he increased his volume when he repeated the word nothing. Then he scanned our home as if it were a barren wasteland. I glanced at him and within seconds could pick out any number of enjoyable activities he could try… Read More →
“Wow, this is stunning,” my oldest said facetiously, staring into a wall of dense gray clouds. After a couple of hours of hiking in the dense forest, we had finally made it to the big, dramatic view. Except that instead of a sweeping green vista, there were clouds. And we were inside them. “Isn’t it… Read More →
1. Why Forecasting Emotions Can Help Kids Handle Them When we hit a rocky spot, it is certainly tempting as parents to hope that tomorrow will be a better day. Thankfully, we are often right! Sometimes all it takes is a good night’s sleep to increase our kids’ capacity to handle what comes their way.… Read More →
“Your turn!” one of my kids shouted to the other. I looked over to the kitchen table to see that they were engaged in one one of the many card games they had picked up at school. Buoyed by the warm glow of sibling cooperation, I turned to go upstairs. It turns out that the… Read More →
“I try to have a positive attitude about it and give him a fresh start,” a parent recently shared with me. “But it seems like every day there is a blow up when it’s time to stop gaming. It’s miserable.” “Ugh. That sounds so hard,” I responded picturing similar scenes playing out in my own… Read More →
“What are you making?” I asked my kids as I dropped into their basement play area. I glanced quickly around and noted several cut up cardboard boxes, a couple of old Tic Tac containers, multiple rolls of duct tape, and the remains of various lego kits. They were clearly creating something that didn’t come with… Read More →
“All of this talk of modeling always feels like so much pressure!” a parent recently shared with me. “What do you mean?” I responded. “I just feel like the knowledge that my kids are watching and listening all the time means that I really need to have things together. Which… I definitely don’t feel like… Read More →
“I see that the rates are starting to come down,” a parent recently shared with me. “But I don’t feel the relief I was expecting. It’s just relentless,” she concluded. “Yeah. I don’t think grief works that way,” I said gently. I knew that her father, who had been another primary caretaker for her kids,… Read More →
During a short stint of online learning this winter I paused behind my oldest who was perched at the table with his Chromebook open. As he haphazardly clicked around the screen, it didn’t take long for me to remember what a heavy lift it is for a growing brain to focus attention amidst a sea… Read More →
