Posted on 2/23/2021
A therapist takes a 10-year-old boy into what she calls “therapy.” The young fellow is belligerently defiant toward his parents and throws titanic tantrums when things don’t go his way. At school...
Read MorePosted on 12/29/2020
Q: Our son is seven years old and in the second grade. His school went virtual this past Spring and we see no end to it, not in the near term at least. When he was going to a brick-and-mortar...
Read MorePosted on 9/20/2020
A mother in California seeks her pastor’s opinion on allowing her fifteen-year-old son to have a smartphone. The boy claims that if he can’t use social media, he will have no friends. Mom is...
Read MorePosted on 5/5/2020
No rational person would argue that the smaller the class size, the better, right?” asked the radio talk show host. “I think I’m a rational person,” I said, “and I can offer proof...
Read MorePosted on 4/28/2020
In his November 1863 address at Gettysburg, Abraham Lincoln proclaimed that the men who lost their lives on that battlefield had done so in order that “government of the people, by the people and...
Read MorePosted on 1/15/2020
Q: Our ten-year-old granddaughter lives with us. We have custody of her but her father, our son, is now asking us for visitation privileges. I probably don’t need to tell you that both he and his...
Read MorePosted on 11/26/2019
After a recent talk in South Florida, women came up to me in droves asking, “How much should I help my children with their schoolwork?” That not one man asked the question...
Read MorePosted on 10/29/2019
The Portal. It sounds like something out of a science fiction novel, the gateway to an alternative universe that lures, then traps the unwary in its nefarious web of illusion, where things are...
Read MorePosted on 10/2/2019
Q: We held off giving our oldest daughter a smartphone until she was fifteen, the age at which we allowed her older brother to have one. We read your column weekly in our hometown newspaper and...
Read MorePosted on 7/23/2019
My recent column pertaining to a 12-year-old who told his parents he’d thought about suicide several times over the past six months stirred a fair number of folks to respond. Feelings toward the...
Read MorePosted 2 weeks ago
My husband works out of town every other week. He is out of town for the Easter holiday. He does not have a relationship with my older son, who is living at home during this college semester. He...
Read MorePosted on 3/22/2021
My seventeen year old son has been growing his hair out. It is time for his senior pictures and I want him to get a haircut. His girlfriend likes his hair, therefore he is reluctant to cut it. How...
Read MorePosted on 3/10/2021
Our 18yr old son says that he is stressed out. He is finishing his senior year of high school which has not been a normal year with Covid and what politically has happened in the US, as well as...
Read MorePosted on 1/13/2021
Hi, John and Team! My husband and I cannot get our 17 yo old son to complete the most basic of tasks regarding his room! On a daily basis, we expect him to make his bed, keep dirty clothes in...
Read MorePosted on 1/11/2021
My son is 19 and is living at home while attending college. His father has a narcissistic personality disorder. He lives and works in another state but travels home every other week. There is...
Read MorePosted on 1/4/2021
My 16 year old son listens to rap & when we realized it was explicit, we put controls on his phone. He still listens to some very negative stuff. He has always been very strong willed & is...
Read MorePosted on 12/15/2020
What should I do if my daughters only friends are bad influences on her and not people I want her being friends with? One is a lesbian, one has anxiety issues and they both are obsessed with Tik...
Read MorePosted on 12/13/2020
My daughter (age 16) is extremely shy and always has been. Recently due to my divorce situation, we had to relocate and so making friends has been a struggle. However, I have observed her...
Read MorePosted on 12/7/2020
We have a 21 year old son, who is still in college. He has severe animus toward his 17 year old sister, and has had it for the past 6-8 years. Little sister, for all practical purposes, is very...
Read MorePosted on 11/18/2020
Do you have any advice on teen dating? Specifically how to handle an unhealthy relationship that you are watching your teen daughter engage in?
Read MorePosted on 1/8/2015
This is an entertaining and informative talk on understanding and managing even the most petulant of today’s teenagers. The talk was recorded live before an audience in San Diego, CA and is based...
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