Hormones are raging.  My identity is a mystery. I need something nice to wear.               An adolescent describing adolescence Take the above quote, throw in some anger, intense mood swings, grandiosity, a ravenous appetite and wanting to run in a pack of friends, and you begin to get the adolescence picture.  Common knowledge… read more

With the proliferation of texting, Facebook, and other forms of electronic communication, it seems that the definition of communication is changing.  How are these changes affecting how young people relate to one another?  In a recent column, Garrison Keillor lamented the lack of good, old fashioned conversation.  He reported that the Pew Research Center found that 75% of 12-… read more

In the wake of the murder of Yeardley Love by her University of Virginia classmate George Huguely, we are all forced to confront the ugly reality of abuse and violence in teen and young adult relationships.  Just after Love’s tragic death, The Baltimore Sun reported that “distraught students are searching their memories for warning signs they might have missed.”… read more

Your child is counting down the days ‘til the end of the school year.  Before you know it, the day of departure for sleepaway camp will be here.  You’ve gone shopping for clothes, stamped your child’s name on piles of T-shirts and socks, and started packing the duffel bag.  But in all the excitement, have you been preparing your… read more

Your college student has made it through freshman year and is returning home for the summer.  How are you feeling about this?  If you’re experiencing a mixture of anticipation and anxiety, you’re not alone.  Get ready for some changes and challenges. College students have become used to living without parental rules and oversight.  They may bristle when parents express… read more

To My Child, I am letting you go to Senior Week, but that doesn’t mean I won’t worry.  I know you want me to start treating you like an adult by giving you some space and some trust.  But I also know that sometimes people your age think that nothing can ever happen to them; they don’t really think… read more

What’s one thing that just about all parents have in common?  Worrying about their children!  This is something parents do, across every socio-economic class, ethnic and religious group and school district.  Some parents worry about their children’s behavior, but may be afraid to talk about it because of shame, fear of being blamed, family loyalty, or simply not knowing… read more

As prom season approaches, the most important things on my daughter’s mind may be her dress, make-up and hair. But those are only minor details compared to what’s going on in my head. I’m thinking about inexperienced teenage drivers, alcohol, and risk taking, and I’m just praying that my daughter and all the other teens attending proms will come… read more

A summer job is a rite of passage for many teenagers, and spring is the time to search. But is the recession upsetting your teen’s plan of finding a job?  Will your child be competing with this year’s crop of (so far) jobless college graduates desperately seeking work?  Right now, you’re probably worrying that your teen won’t find something… read more

I was a guest at a birthday party for a nine-year-old, when the cake was brought out. There were your usual oohs and aahs, but they were overshadowed by several girls saying they couldn’t eat the cake. It wasn’t because they didn’t like cake—quite the opposite. One girl said, “I like it too much…I’ll get fat… I’ll lose my… read more