Gender Affirming Parenting
While acknowledging there are many different approaches to parenting I have found that all parents want what is best for the physical and emotional well-being of their child. It is not uncommon for parents to experience their own grief process as they leave behind who they believed their child was and celebrate the child they now have.
Mindfulness with Young Children
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic kids were experiencing high amounts of stress due to pressure from school, extracurricular activities, and personal relationships with friends or family. It’s important that parents help their children develop ways to manage this stress at an early age so that as they grow and experience bigger worries they will have a plan for how to handle it.
Navigating Friendships: Adolescents
As your children continue to grow and enter adolescence, friendships continue to be incredibly important. Friendships help adolescents form their identity, establish independence, find a sense of belonging, and feel accepted. We all know that having good friendships makes us happier, but there are many other positive benefits. Teen friendships are supported with a better immune system, higher self-esteem, lowers the rates of anxiety/depression, and much more.
Talking to Tweens and Teens about Substance Use
Drug and alcohol use can be a difficult topic for tweens, teens, and their parents, but not talking about it does not prevent tweens or teens from using substances. It’s important to remember that this topic is a never ending topic — meaning that it continues through middle school, high school, and college while they develop into a full functioning adult.
Tweens, Teens, and TikTok
As a parent deciding if, when, or how to give them access to an app like TikTok can feel overwhelming due to conflicting beliefs around if TikTok positively or negatively impacts the youth. As a child and adolescent therapist, I believe every parent has to make the decision they feel is in their tweens or teens best interest to keep them emotionally and physically safe.
The Benefits of Worry Stones
As we enter the year of 2022 and the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic it can be assumed that worry, anxiety, and stress will continue to rise for our youth. It’s important for parents to support their child with understanding what worry is, how worry can be helpful, and when worry becomes a problem.