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News, Advice, and Tips for Parenting Teenagers

The By Parents For Parents Blog is regularly updated with the latest news and information on topics that relate to parenting teenagers. We'll post parenting advice and tips from trusted online news sources and expert parenting columns.

We invite you to add your comments. Please let us know if you would like some specific topics covered, want to share your experience as a parent dealing with teens, or just have general feedback on the By Parents For Parents Blog.

Friday, March 19, 2010

Parents of Teens at Risk for 'Burnout'

Most people associate "parental burnout" with parents of newborns. They’re up all night. Their child cries all day (and all night), and there just isn’t much rest to be had. But parents of teenagers can burn out, too.

"Parents of teens who are busting into independence, dating, driving and have hectic schedules need to be aware that these stressors will have an effect on how they are feeling," Denise Witmer wrote in a March 15 article on about.com. "Parents lose sleep and eventually burnout if they don’t take some me-time."

Worried about burnout? Ask yourself the following questions:

Do I feel tired, even after a good night's sleep?
Do I let behavioral issues slide because you simply "can’t deal with" disciplining my child?
Do I have trouble sleeping at night?
Have I lost interest in family activities?

If you answered "yes" to any or all of these questions, it's time to take a break. Schedule some alone time, or indulge in a favorite activity. Do something that relaxes and/or energizes you.

Labels: burnout, pressures, stress

posted by ByParents-forParents at 3:22 AM 0 comments

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

'Parent Universities' Help Strenghen Family Bonds

Bob Rettger couldn’t figure out how to get through to his daughter. He was concerned about her nonstop texting, and some of the drama surrounding her friends. But every conversation he tried to start ended in an argument. Then he attended a parenting lecture, and within a few months, everything had changed.

In a March 14 Chicago Tribune article, Noreen S. Ahmed-Ullah reported on the benefits that Rettger and others have experienced after attending “Parent Universities” at various sites throughout the nation:

"Within two weeks the stress in my house, you could feel it come down," says Rettger, 57, of Glen Ellyn, Ill. "Within two months, it was gone. Within four months, I was getting sweet cards from my daughter, thanking me for my efforts."

Many school districts and nonprofit parent groups are holding what they call "parent universities." Structured as seminars and workshops, they're meant to teach parents how to react calmly and effectively, and how to achieve the Holy Grail of parenting: earning your teen's respect. ...

An all-day school for parents in Naperville, Ill., last month drew nearly 300 parents who paid up to $30 each ...

Glenbard High School District 87's monthly parent lectures are free, thanks to a $100,000 grant from the Cebrin Goodman Center, a foundation based in Skokie, Ill., that was started by the grandparents of a young woman who died of a heroin overdose.

Labels: parenting tips

posted by ByParents-forParents at 3:05 AM 0 comments

Monday, March 15, 2010

Today's Youth More Liberal, Less Religious Than Members of Parents' Generation

Today's young people are to the left of their parents when it comes to politics and religion, according to a new study from Pew Research Center.

Researchers asked people who are in their late teens and early 20s various questions about their beliefs. While they pray as often as other generations did at their age, only one in five attend worship services.

"They are the least overtly religious American generation in modern times," according to the report.

Other findings include the following:

A majority of young people support allowing gay service members to serve openly.
Only one in 100 cares about becoming famous, but the vast majority would like to have a happy marriage. They are marrying later -- only 20 percent of the under-30s is married.
Young people are more likely to be a member of a minority than older Americans. Nineteen percent are Hispanic, 14 percent are African-American, and 5 percent are Asian.
Despite the recession, this generation is upbeat about their country, the role of government, and their futures.

"They are self confident, self expressive, liberal, upbeat, and open to change," the Pew researchers reported.

Labels: attitudes

posted by ByParents-forParents at 3:05 AM 0 comments

Friday, March 12, 2010

Secondhand Smoke Linked to Arterial Damage in Children

Researchers have discovered another health risk related to young people and smoking. Children who have been exposed to cigarette smoke have thicker arteries, according to a study from Finland.

Dr. Katariina Kallio and her colleagues at the University of Turku studied 494 children ages 8 to 13 years old by measuring levels of a byproduct of nicotine in their blood.
The children with the highest levels had carotid artery walls that were 7 percent thicker than children with the lowest levels.

"These findings suggest that children should not face exposure to tobacco smoke at all," said Dr. Kallio. "Even a little exposure to tobacco smoke may be harmful for blood vessels."

The study appeared in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.

Labels: secondhand smoke, tobacco

posted by ByParents-forParents at 3:48 AM 0 comments

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