Puberty means sexual development In this series of articles, I have described how extraordinary developmental changes in the adolescent brain explains much of the behavior that we see in these young kids. Parenting adolescents is challenging because their emotions shift without notice. It feels like…
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Parenting the Adolescent, Part V: Taking Risks With Little Common Sense
November 19, 2014
Throughout this series, I have been describing the unique features of the adolescent brain and how its development is influencing your child’s behavior and decision-making process. Dopamine, a neurotransmitter, is ramped up during adolescence and contributes to the changes that are seen during this important…
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Parenting Adolescents, Part IV: Self-Awareness, Focus, Impulse Control
November 3, 2014
Your child asks you to drop him off at school, but as you approach the campus he insists that you stop a little further away because he does not want to be seen in the car with his parent and siblings. Have you had this…
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Parenting Adolescents, Part III: Potential Family Disruptions As Your Adolescent Prefers Friends Over Family
October 21, 2014
An impressive physical and emotional transformation takes place during the adolescent years of a child’s life. I have many vivid memories of those years after raising my own two children. Now my adult children have adolescent children of their own and I am reliving many…
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Parenting Adolescents Part II: Dynamic Changes in Your Adolescent’s Brain
October 6, 2014
During adolescence, which is a time of growth between childhood and adulthood, the brain is tasked to mature our child’s thinking toward independence as an adult. Despite the wonderful biological reason behind adolescence, the transition is often confusing for both the adolescent and the parent.…
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