Page 1 of Karen Vincent's writing

1. Tips For Parents With Oppositional Teenagers Does your teen have Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) or do you suspect they do? If so, they will respond differently than most teens when you try to set limits or implement consequences. They will often rebel and will (posted by Karen 15 days 5 hours ago.)

2. How Do You Make Your Teenager Feel? I truly love this quote by Maya Angelou, "I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel". This is so very, v ery true. Our emotions will always carry more... (posted by Karen 27 days 12 hours ago.)

3. I Can'T Believe My Teenager Looks Like This! I can’t tell you how many times I have heard this!! Whether it is the color of their hair, a new piercing, boys with long hair, girls with really short hair, clothes too baggy, clothes too tight or some other “teenage fashion”... (posted by Karen 35 days 7 hours ago.)

4. Why Do Teenagers Seem To Take It All Out On Their Parents? I have heard so many parents say that they do not understand how their teenager can behave for teachers, with their friend’s parents, with relatives but not with them . This often causes parents to question their parenting abilities and can... (posted by Karen 35 days 9 hours ago.)

5. Helicopter Parents: Do They Save or Crash Their Kids? Have you heard the term “Helicopter Parents”? This is a term that is frequently used for a particular parenting style in which parents “rescue” their children from the difficult things that come their way in life. Parents... (posted by Karen 35 days 9 hours ago.)

6. Teenage Gambling Teenage gambling is a behavior that can be addicting and very problematic for some teenagers. It has been reported that 70+ percent of all teenagers engage in some form of gambling and that up to 1/3 of those may develop and actual addiction to... (posted by Karen 84 days 8 hours ago.)

7. Teenage Behaviors - What Is Normal? The teenage years involve many changes, both emotional and physical, which can result in a lot of confusion for teens themselves as well as for their parents. One of the major tasks associated with adolescent development is that of gaining... (posted by Karen 88 days 4 hours ago.)

8. Back To School Stress For Parents Of Teenagers As parents are sighing a breath of relief that the school year has begun, many also feel some worry and anxiety about the stress and arguments that may come with the new school year. Below I have listed two of the most common stressors parents may... (posted by Karen 1 year 242 days ago.)

9. Praising Your Teenager The importance of giving praise to children cannot be stressed enough. Even though they may tell you they do not care what you think, teenagers want your approval and want to know that you recognize their strengths, achievements and they want you... (posted by Karen 1 year 242 days ago.)

10. How Can I Help My Teenager's Self Esteem As most people know, the teenage years can be filled with awkwardness, self doubt and insecurity. Adolescence is a period of growing up that can be scary and uncomfortable and which can significantly impact one's self esteem. Parents may notice... (posted by Karen 2 years 38 days ago.)

11. It Seems Like My Teen Does Not Care About Anything Have you ever said the words, "It seems like my teenager does not care about anything these days"? Well if so, as the parent of a teenager, you are not alone. I often work with parents who are concerned about their teen's lack of interest in their... (posted by Karen 2 years 38 days ago.)

12. Getting Your Teen To Do Their Homework One worry that is shared by many, many parents of teenagers (or any children for that matter) is about school and grades. Parents rightfully worry about how their child's academic performance will impact their future in terms of college... (posted by Karen 2 years 53 days ago.)

13. I Can't Get My Teenager To Listen Unless I Yell For many parents, yelling feels like the only way they can communicate with their teenagers. While it is true that it can feel like this at times, yelling is generally not an effective means of communication. Think for a moment about when someone... (posted by Karen 2 years 53 days ago.)

14. Setting Limits With Teenagers Do you find that you tell your teenager that they cannot do something and then you find that you end up letting them do it anyway? Do you find that you ask your teenager to do something and they do not, yet you never really address this with them... (posted by Karen 2 years 53 days ago.)

15. Teenage Bedwetting A teenage topic that is rarely discussed openly is that of bedwetting or nocturnal enuresis. There are teens who still wet their beds and parents who worry about this with good reason, however, there is little discussion about this topic. Why is... (posted by Karen 2 years 53 days ago.)

16. Feeling Drained As The Parent Of A Teenager I have heard countless parents of teenagers tell me that they feel overwhelmed on a daily basis and "feel drained" by their lives. They also often report that they feel guilty for feeling this way which makes them feel worse because they feel they... (posted by Karen 2 years 53 days ago.)

17. Giving Choices To Teenagers Teenagers are growing, starting to think more independently and trying to be more independent. If they are not given choices, the consequences could include their not learning to make their own decisions or that they are always frustrated, angry... (posted by Karen 2 years 53 days ago.)

18. Does My Teenager Need Psychiatric Medication? Wondering if your teenager needs medication is something that can weigh heavily on the minds of parents. Parents often wonder about medication if their teenager begin s behaving differently, is struggling with being able to pay attention in school... (posted by Karen 2 years 53 days ago.)

19. Keeping Good Boundaries and Reducing Stress As The Parent Of A Teenager Maintaining good boundaries as the parent of a teenager is important. Boundaries are about maintaining good self care and setting limits on how much others can place on you. Having clear and healthy boundaries can help you avoid a lot of problems... (posted by Karen 2 years 232 days ago.)

20. How To Spend Quality Time With Your Teenager Teenagers can present as ungrateful, like they cannot be bothered by you and like they could take you or leave you as their parent at times. There is no arguing this and most parents of teenagers can identify with this at some point whether all... (posted by Karen 2 years 232 days ago.)

21. Do You Think Your Teenager Is Too Self Absorbed? Parents who are concerned that their teenager is very self absorbed are not alone in their concerns or worry. The reason for such noticeable self absorption in teenagers is related to their developmental stage. Feeling as though the world revolves... (posted by Karen 2 years 232 days ago.)

22. How To Give Advice To Teenagers As I have discussed in other newsletters and in lectures, being a teenager means wanting independence and wanting to be in control this is part of the "nature of the beast" of being a teen whether we like it or not. So, with this said, it is very... (posted by Karen 2 years 232 days ago.)

23. When Two Parents Do Not Get Along It can be very difficult and stressful when two parents are not getting along or are not in agreement about how to parent. This becomes more challenging with teenagers because they will quickly understand what is going on and will make every... (posted by Karen 2 years 232 days ago.)

24. Teenage Self Injury Having a teenager who is self injuring can be very, very scary for a parent. Teen self injury is an issue that has come out more in the news and media so it is being talked about more than in the past. It is important to note that many teens get... (posted by Karen 3 years 37 days ago.)

25. Teenage Defiance Does your teenager not follow though with your requests, not complete tasks or not follow though with general rules and standards of conduct that they used to adhere to? If so, your teenager is demonstrating some level of defiance. Defiance can... (posted by Karen 3 years 79 days ago.)