Tag Archives: teens

Listener Q & A: Getting Curious & Motivating Boys



Powered by RedCircle How, exactly, does one “get curious” about their son without badgering him? That’s a big, important question, and that’s exactly what Jennifer wants to know: Lately, as he is resisting my normal questioning…I feel like I am now pushing him to evaluate his feelings, talk to me, or just engage…I have seen … Continue reading Listener Q & A: Getting Curious & Motivating Boys


Modern Male Puberty is Awkward



Powered by RedCircle Modern male puberty starts earlier than you think. It may start as early as age 9 in boys – which means that the mood swings you’re seeing in your 10-year-old son could well be puberty-related. After all, as Cara Natterson & Vanessa Kroll Bennett write in their book This is So Awkward: … Continue reading Modern Male Puberty is Awkward


Christopher Pepper Discusses Health Education and Boys



Powered by RedCircle Health education varies greatly from place to place. Some boys receive great, age-appropriate, inclusive health education at school. Others do not. “It’s pretty inconsistent,” says Christopher Pepper, a health educator who currently teaches in the San Francisco Unified School District & is working on a book called TALK TO YOUR BOYS: 27 … Continue reading Christopher Pepper Discusses Health Education and Boys


Listener Q & A: Punishment, Teenage Boys, & Letting Go



Powered by RedCircle How do you make space for a teenage boy to make his own mistakes? Especially when said teenager is frustrating, annoying, and contributing to family chaos? Sandra said: Teenager years are frustrating — wanting to tell him what do, yet I know he needs to make his own mistakes. Throw in toddler … Continue reading Listener Q & A: Punishment, Teenage Boys, & Letting Go


Supporting LGBTQ+ Kids



Powered by RedCircle Supporting LGBTQ+ kids helps them become healthy adults. Jo Langford is a father, therapist, and author of The Pride Guide: A Guide to Social and Sexual health for LGBTQ Youth and Spare Me “The Talk!” (for both boy-identified and girl-identified youth). He helps kids and parents navigate sexuality, gender, media, and technology. … Continue reading Supporting LGBTQ+ Kids


Lisa Damour on The Emotional Lives of Teens



Powered by RedCircle Dr. Lisa Damour is our go-to expert regarding the emotional lives of teens.  She is a psychologist & author of The Emotional Lives of Teenagers: Raising Connected, Capable, and Compassionate Adolescents, and although her previous two books were a deep dive into the world of girls, she gets boys. Consider this sentence: … Continue reading Lisa Damour on The Emotional Lives of Teens


Gemma Gaudette Talks About Raising Boys



Powered by RedCircle Gemma Gaudette says “we don’t give boys enough credit.” Gemma, host of Idaho Matters & a mom of two sons (currently ages 11 & 15), knows (from personal experience!) that boys can be dramatic & sensitive, even though society has coded those traits as “feminine.” Yet many adults continue to insist on … Continue reading Gemma Gaudette Talks About Raising Boys


Teen Boys’ Emotional Lives



Powered by RedCircle Teen boys mystify (and frustrate) their parents. Especially their moms. But there’s a lot going on behind and beneath that sometimes stony exterior. Teen boys are not devoid of emotions; in fact, they devote a lot of time and attention to managing and controlling their emotions. They may not show their emotions … Continue reading Teen Boys’ Emotional Lives


Parenting Teenage Boys with Lee Bare



Parenting teenage boys is a challenge. And an opportunity. In some ways, says child and adolescent psychologist Lee Bare, parenting a teenage boy is like parenting a newborn. “You have to be prepared for anything and you never know what kind of mood they’re going to wake up in,” says Lee, who is also the … Continue reading Parenting Teenage Boys with Lee Bare


Holding the Calm with Hesha Abrams



Holding the calm, says Hesha Abrams, is an essential skill for resolving conflict and diffusing tension. Conflict and tension trigger an individual’s amygdala, the “reptilian” part of the brain that initiates the flight-flight-or-freeze response. And when the amygdala is activated, the human body goes into a refractory state for about 20 minutes. Our eyes and … Continue reading Holding the Calm with Hesha Abrams