Children

Throughout my years as a clinician working with children, parents have often asked, "how can I motivate my child?" Most of us misunderstand motivation. We think what motivates us will also motivate our children.  However, that’s not necessarily the case.
It’s important to be understanding of how your kids feel, even when you don’t get it. As parents, we have all been in the situation where we don’t understand why our child is losing it over something that seems so minor.
National Suicide Prevention Week is September 6-12th, with World Suicide Prevention Day on September 10th. Suicide currently ranks as the second leading cause of death amongst those ages 10-24. Suicide is a preventable death. We just have to know what to look for in order to provide the help needed.
If your life looked drastically different ten days ago, the good news is you’re not alone. With the vast majority of Americans (and even the world) in some sort of self-quarantine, many of us are adapting to the "new normal," which can feel isolating, confusing, exhausting and a host of other emotions.
Imagine you need to do research to meet an important deadline. You sit down to work on it, but the TV is on in the background, your phone is buzzing with new updates on social media, and you haven’t eaten dinner yet. It’s difficult for even the most competent adult to manage these external factors and still meet their goal.
I am that mom that let’s my daughter climb on the playground without shadowing her every move. I’m also the mom who let’s my daughter steal toys from other kids and vice versa without getting involved. Lastly, I’m that mom who will stand there and let my daughter have a tantrum without trying to stop it, regardless if we're in a public place or not.
When your child is struggling with intense emotions, it can be challenging to help them feel calm and in control. Intense emotions often escalate quickly, making it difficult to use problem-solving skills during a challenging situation. Parents, and individuals working with children, often forget that the developing mind doesn’t process as quickly as an adult brain, thus making it hard to self-soothe and regulate strong feelings.

The rapid digitalization of modern society affects people differently. For parents in particular, this age has added an extra hurdle; they now must endeavor to guide their children through both the real world and the virtual world.

The link between academic struggles and depression can start as early as elementary school. A new study suggests that children who are doing well in classrooms are more popular and emotionally secure than their peers who are having trouble academically. But not for the reasons we typically expect.
Labor Day: A long weekend of barbeques, trips to the beach, retail sales and vacation. Also, the last weekend of summer and the last hoorah before school and fall schedules begin–YIKES! Labor Day tends to evoke two very different emotions in people–excitement over the former and dread over the latter. For many, summer consists of 2 months of relaxation, lighter workloads, no school and traveling. Transitioning from this lifestyle back to reality (5 day workweeks, school/homework, and a heavier workload) can send anyone into a frenzy!
As a DBT therapist, one of my primary goals when working with clients is to help supply effective skills and coping mechanisms to help them manage their emotions when things may be difficult. While reviewing these skills, I often find that these children, adolescents and young adults have had very little opportunity to build and/or practice coping mechanisms on their own since they were little.