You know that my mission as a teen psychologist is to keep you aware of all trending teen topics and all teen trends. Well, I have kept you up to date on issues like the elusive "thigh gap" and other unusual teen trends that leave parents scratching their collective heads...

Your teens never cease to amaze me. We all talk about how addicted they are to social media.

Try getting your 15-year-old son to turn off his video game and come down to dinner and guess what? He may be down in 20 minutes if you're lucky. Having a group...

I talk to teens all the time and I am well aware that they, like many adults, follow the celebrity gossip. This is especially the case when the celebrities that they admire are going through hard times. Consider Amanda Bynes, the 29-year-old former child star and actress. Sadly, she has...

Just say the word "bathing suit" and women and their teen daughters cringe in collective dread. And, yes it is well-documented that teen girls consistently rate themselves as being too "fat" and teen boys rate themselves as being too thin. Well, summer is just around the corner and...

The idea of a teen committing suicide and of a young life being abbreviated is almost too painful to think about. Nonetheless, it does happen. Teens get depressed, anxious and experience life stressors; some do contemplate suicide and others ultimately go on to pull the trigger on their lives.

A...

In my experience working with teens, I have become well-aware of the fact that many teens become curious enough to glimpse at pornography. After all, they are curious about all things sexual and hormonally driven and, of course, about all things that tend to be off-limits. Parents ask me all...

Sometimes we have to step out of the box to educate and warn our teens. Sometimes we even have to capture their interest for more than just a few moments to make some impact. All of the mothers and fathers of teens out there know that you can lose your...

I now and you know that our teens are busy evaluating each other. Today, though, even I was shocked when I learned that the male teens at Issaquah High School in Washington have a tradition of rating the teen girls' on hotness level. They have a specific website designated for...

Oh no, we are concerned about our teen daughters and body image, our teen daughters and eating disorders, our teen daughters and depression, sexuality and self-esteem. I apologize profusely for adding yet another issue to your list of issues to be concerned about. In my experience with parents, though, I...

The FDA has given approval to make the pill known as Plan B -- a progesterone pill -- available to teens age 15 and over on an over the counter basis and without a prescription. This will be put into place almost immediately. This pill is taken after...

Since the days when I was a teenager, teens have loved to share photos. Capturing moments and sharing memories has usually been a source of joy. Photos are, after all, intended to capture history, lovely moments and times spent together. They are also intended to bring a bit of happiness...

Senior year of high school is a mixed bag. It's not Santa's gift bag, but is instead a bag full of emotional joys, disappointments, separations and boredom. Yes, boredom.

Let's start with first semester of senior year. Both teens and parents are fretting over college applications, deadlines for these applications...

Today, I am going to turn all of my usual ways of looking at things on their collective heads.

Calm your teens down about all of the bombings, school shootings and alleged rapes of teens? I am not so sure that that is the route to go...

Just when I thought that I had heard it all, I learned about yet another disturbing trend among our teen girls. I spoke to you about the much desired thigh gap a few weeks ago. Apparently, many teen girls covet having a visible gap between their thighs. This is, according...

In my role as a clinical psychologist who talks to parents of teens and tweens all week long, I learn a lot about parents and their secrets. I know that there are lots of parents who are familiar with Facebook, but who have little idea of what to look for...

I think that I may be losing my mind. I need all of the parents of teens out there to help me. Listen, I rarely implore you to help me with reality testing but I need you now. Look -- I devote my life to the well-being of teens everywhere...

Victoria's Secret has launched a new ad campaign and this one is quite clear that it is targeting our younger teens, the ones who are barely out of middle school. Have a look for yourself. Let me tell you that I am not pleased. Nor do I think...

A recent study from the University of Georgia conducted by Pamela Orpinas and colleagues and published in the Journal of Research on Adolescence suggests that the answer may be no. Perhaps middle school and dating should be mutually exclusive. In their very carefully conducted study Orpinas and colleagues...

Dear Parents,

I am quite sure that you have all been in this situation at one time or another with at least one of your children. You know, when you pretty much know that your teens are going to drink alcohol at a party so you debate to yourself about...

Kids and teens are often dismissive of praise from their parents. I am sure that parents out there can relate to this, as we have been all been told at one time or another by one or several of our kids, "stop it mom" or even, "you're just saying that...