December is here, which means we’re already in the thick of the winter holidays here in the U.S. Halloween warmed us up. Thanksgiving made it real. Now the big break is just around the corner. Kids will be out of school for a couple of weeks, families will travel near and far for vacations or to visit one another for their traditional holiday rituals. No matter your faith, your belief
Adolescence brings a host of changes to the life of any family. Sometimes, those changes are difficult to handle. The teens themselves may not know what’s going on, even if the changes are painful and confusing. And if the changes are painful and confusing, they may try to ignore them, suppress them, or deal with them by acting out or attempting to self-medicate with drugs or alcohol. Internal changes in
The past twenty years have seen dramatic changes in the way we view addiction. We’ve gone from a paradigm that assumed people who develop alcohol and substance use disorders do so because of a character flaw, a moral failing, or a lack of willpower. We now view addiction as a disease of the brain. We’ve changed the way we talk about addiction, too: we avoid words like addict, abuser, drunk,
Awareness about mental health issues increases every day. That’s a positive development, when we consider that not long ago, the entire subject was close to taboo. Stigma around mental health disorders and treatment for mental health disorders kept people from seeking the support they needed. This environment had a disproportionate effect on adolescents, because many mental health disorders begin to surface during the teen years, and when disorders like depression
This spring, lawmakers in the state of Washington passed a bill changing the rights of parents and teenagers about two important – and sometimes controversial – aspects of treatment for mental health and substance use disorders: consent to treatment and access to treatment information. Until the passage of House Bill 1874, teenagers had robust rights with regards to treatment for alcohol/substance use and/or mental health disorders. Before the bill, parents
In our recent article November is Homeless Youth Awareness Month, we offered basic information everyone should know about youth and adolescent homelessness. We covered the overall numbers, identified the primary reasons youth and teens become homeless or experience homelessness, and listed a series of evidence-based recommendations made by private and public entities that can help prevent or reduce the number of homeless families, youth, and adolescents in the U.S. Here’s
If your teen has Oppositional Defiant Disorder, or ODD, life can be a never-ending power struggle. While it’s normal to have an increase in conflicts with parents during adolescence, teens with ODD are constantly irritable, sarcastic, or aggressive (either verbally or physically). They may frequently shrug off rules and use obscenities or curse words. You may feel like they deliberately try to upset you with their extremely hurtful remarks, and
The winter holidays are upon us. In the U.S., the six-week period between mid-November and New Year’s Day is the most publicly festive time of the year. These holidays take over normal life, more or less, and almost everyone gets involved in some way or another. Cities and towns across the country decorate their Main Streets and shopping districts to draw people out, celebrate their civic pride, foster a sense
We have a problem in the United States: homelessness. It’s a problem that affects everyone. From small towns to big cities, from federal to state to local governments, from our progressive coastal cities to our more traditional rural interior, homelessness reaches every corner of our country. Every November, The Coalition for Homeless Youth, The National Coalition for the Homeless, The National Alliance to End Homelessness, and many other public and
If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it a thousand times. Overall wellness starts with three basic things: Healthy food. Plenty of sleep. Regular activity. You know what good food means: whole grains, plenty of fruits and vegetables, lean protein. And cut back on the sugar and processed foods. That’s how you avoid obesity, heart disease, and a host of other common physical ailments. You’ve got that down – or
