Parents Archives | Page 81 of 107

Team Sports, Adverse Childhood Experiences, and Mental Health

A story published by National Public Radio (NPR) in May caught our attention. Here’s the headline: “Playing Teen Sports May Protect From Some Damages of Childhood Trauma” Like many things we see in the media that intersect with our specialty – helping adolescents struggling with mental health and/or substance use disorders – we thought to ourselves: “Hmmm. Interesting – if true.” It turns out that this interesting piece of news

July 22, 2019

Vaping, Teens, and Delinquent Behavior

The media is filled with conflicting news about vaping. On the one hand, research shows e-cigarettes and vaping are an effective component in smoking-cessation programs, i.e. helping people quit. On the other hand, the development of products like the Juul – a vape device that looks like a computer flash drive – and the marketing of flavored vape products has caused an uproar in our culture. Most people see the

July 19, 2019

The Relationship Between Teacher Depression and Student Behavior

The Mood Makes the Class In an article published in 2014 in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology entitled “Pathways From Teacher Depression and Child-Care Quality to Child Behavioral Problems” researchers describe a clear relationship between depression in preschool teachers and emerging behavioral issues displayed by their students. Teachers, parents, and professional child service workers generally recognize that children play out the emotional issues present in the adults with

July 17, 2019

Parents

Codependency and Teens: When Friendships Turn Toxic

Adults often overlook codependency among teens. It’s easy to understand why: it’s often masked as extreme loyalty to a friend or other individual, when it’s really a harmful, toxic relationship that needs to end. In a codependent friendship or relationship, the dynamic often looks like this: Friend 1 has a warm, friendly, seemingly helpful type of personality that some might call “people-pleasing.” Usually, they appear academically, socially, and behaviorally successful

July 16, 2019

News in Addiction Research: Oxytocin Reduces Alcohol Consumption

Across the country, people with alcohol and substance use disorders work with physicians, nurses, therapists, and counselors every day to overcome addiction. They learn about how addiction affects their bodies, brains, and emotions. They participate in coping skills groups, relapse prevention groups, and in some cases receive therapy for co-occurring disorders. The clinicians who work with them observe, take notes, and analyze the relative success of their treatment modalities. They

July 9, 2019

Exercise for Children With ADHD

Increasing Prevalence of ADHD Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has been a hot topic in education, pediatric medicine, and parenting for decades. The condition has been known in various forms by various names for at least a hundred years, but the current definition was crystallized in the year 2000 by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) in their definitive publication “The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition” (DSM-IV)

July 3, 2019

Breaking the Myth: Heroin is Not a Party Drug

Parents often call us when their adolescent is having substance abuse issues. Sometimes, when they mention that their teen has used heroin, they’ll follow up with a statement like, “But they say they’ve only tried it a couple of times at a party…” Unfortunately, we’re here to break your bubble: Heroin is not a social drug. If you’re imagining a bunch of teens getting high together and letting loose at

July 2, 2019

Summer Volunteer Options for Teenagers

Summer is here. If you have a teen around the house and you’re looking to keep them busy doing something productive until school starts, don’t worry. We have a great idea that might be the perfect solution. We realize we’re nearing the midpoint of summer – let’s call it July 4th – and it’s a little late to make plans. But sometimes plans change. And let’s face it: sometimes the

July 1, 2019

Addiction

Why Benzodiazepines are Dangerous for Teens

Two years ago, popular celebrity Lena Dunham shared her personal experience with benzodiazepines, otherwise known as benzos. Although her doctor prescribed benzos to manage her anxiety, Dunham found that she was becoming dependent on them. So much so, in fact, that she was taking the medication about every day for three years. They are only supposed to be prescribed for weeks, at most. Benzodiazepines are minor tranquilizers with sedative effects.

June 28, 2019

Playing Games With Your Kids: Win, Lose, or Draw?

Playing Games: Fun and Learning Parents and child development experts alike agree that play is an essential part of growing up. Kids learn while playing – there’s really no argument there. Like lion cubs wrestling in the den, we recognize that the games children play prepare them for life as adults. While our kids aren’t necessarily learning to fight for their lives by tooth and claw, they’re learning skills that

June 24, 2019