Over the past year, COVID has taken a toll on mental health. School is an integral part of child and teen’s development and mental health, and up until recently, half of U.S. students had been attending school virtually. As a result, many kids have experienced isolation, delayed development, lower self-esteem and self-confidence, and new levels […]
More than 90% of teens use social media daily. Eighty-one percent of these teens use social media to connect with friends, and one-fifth of teen social media users spend four or more hours on it each day [Pew Research Center study]. These stats do not include the amount of time that teens spend on video […]
Our lives are full of life-changing moments. Many of the choices that we make have domino effects that impact ourselves and others. Some of the outcomes of our actions are obvious, but many will go undetected, especially those that affect other people. Bullying and kindness are two behaviors that often become life-changing moments. The Life-Changing […]
Seventy-five percent of bullied kids and teens have not told their parents. In fact, they haven’t told anyone. Most parents think they’ll know when and if their child becomes a victim of bullying. But the truth is, most don’t. Other parents feel their child is not at risk. The child has a good group of […]
Nearly every day, we see news headlines with the word or a variation of the word, “bullying.” Most commonly, these reports involve students between the ages of 10 and 17; however, there are many accounts that also feature political figures, workplaces and even professional sport teams. The fact is, bullying can happen anywhere and can […]
Summer is an amazing time when your child can escape from the pressures of school: homework and exams, trying to fit into social cliques, and even being a victim (or contributor to) cyberbullying. While cyberbullies don’t take a summer break, they can be less “active” when school’s not in session – giving victims a temporary […]
When bullying occurs, there is a bully and a victim, but there are usually other people who are standing by – witnessing, participating, or standing up against what is happening. These bystanders, depending on how they behave, will either negatively or positively affect how the bully reacts. The bystander will either join with the bully […]
As summer is approaching fast, you have probably started to plan activities for your kids. Some kids will go to camp (click here for a comprehensive list of local summer camps), others may have summer jobs or summer school. It’s important that even during summer activities, we’re aware of any potential bullying situations. When kids […]
There are important risk factors for you to know if you are worried your child may be bullied. There are physical, emotional and relational risk factors as well as other risk factors. All of these play an important role for parents to look at with their children. Physical Risk Factors If your child looks physically […]
I had heard a lot of discussion coming from different groups about the recently released Netflix’s ” 13 Reasons Why.” There seems to be a huge controversy about whether children should be watching this. I believe it is not only necessary, but important that kids watch this show with their parents and not just with […]
