Category Archives: Parents

Parenting is a very special job. Find great tips here on how to make your job easier – or at least take comfort in knowing that others are going through the same thing!

APA Issued A Health Advisory On Social Media Use in Adolescents

American Psychological Association (APA) issued information about the potential risks of content, features, and functions regarding the science of how social media affects youth.  Almost a year after APA issued its health advisory on social media, use in adolescence, society continues to wrestle with ways to maximize the benefits of these platforms while protecting youth from the potential harms associated with them. By early 2024, few meaningful changes to social media platforms had been enacted by industry, and no federal policies had been adopted. There remains a need for social media companies to make fundamental changes to their platforms. According … Continue reading →

Playful Parenting: Learning To Be Playful With Your Kids

It’s easy to get stuck in a parenting rut, and let’s face it: parenting can sometimes feel a little like “Groundhog Day”— the same routines on repeat day in, day out. While routine and structure are incredibly important for our children (and us!) we can sometimes forget to have fun, according to BabyChick. We feel tired and don’t have the energy to get down on the ground and play with our kids, or we’ve simply forgotten how to let go, be spontaneous and whimsical, and use our imaginations. However, playful parenting can be an important tool or approach when it … Continue reading →

Grandparents Share Brutally Honest Opinions About Modern Parenting

The practices and norms around raising kids shift over time, with each generation of parents redefining an age-old role. Sometimes, this shifts are based on new research, technologies or cultural trends; other times, they’re a response to how the previous generation did thing, BuzzFeed reported (via Yahoo! News). Millennials and younger Gen-Xers with kids today are generally parenting in a more conscious way than their own parents did. For better or worse, they have a lot more information, advice, and opinions at their fingertips than the parents who came before them. Because each generation has their own perspective on the … Continue reading →

The New Parenting Trend is “Inchstones”

Tracking and celebrating milestones are a big part of the parenting experience. From the first birthday to the first word to the first day of school, there are many opportunities for excitement, HuffPost reported. Recently, parents have been injecting fanfare into the smaller moments as well. Indeed, Pinterest’s latest trend predictions going into 2024 suggest that more caregivers are embracing “inchstones.” What exactly are inchstones? As the name suggests, “inchstones” stand in contrast to milestones. An inchstone could be half a birthday, a lost tooth, or the first time a kid puts on their shoes without help. It’s about the small steps … Continue reading →

Social Issues That Trouble Today’s Teens

Social issues are problems that affect large groups of people and can affect how well a society functions, Verywell Family reported. Teens can face social problems just like adults can. They may even be more susceptible to these challenges because their brains are still developing and their bodies are changing quickly. Social issues and what we might think of a “teenage problems” can affect emotional and physical health. Depression According to the National Instituted of Mental Health (NIMH), an estimated 4.1 million adolescents in the United States had at least one major depressive episode in 2020. That means 17% of … Continue reading →

81% Of Adults Favor Parental Consent For Minors To Use Social Media

More than 40 states and the District of Columbia are suing Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, alleging its platforms purposefully use addictive features that harm children’s mental health, Pew Research Center reported. Amid this news, U.S. adults and teens are more likely to support than oppose requiring parental consent for monitors to create a social media account and requiring people to verify their age before using these platforms, according to a pair of new Pew Research Center surveys. But adults are far more supportive than teens of these measures, as well as limiting how much time minors … Continue reading →

Study: Parents Can Significantly Influence Child’s Mental Health

Parenting styles that included physical discipline and overcontrolling behavior, referred to as “hostile” parenting, were found to nearly double the risk for their children to develop mental health symptoms, according to a new study, ABC News  reported. The study was published in the medical journal Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences, followed over 7,500 children in Ireland from 9 months old until they were up to 9 years old.  Children who were exposed to hostile parenting at age 3 were 1 1/2 times more likely to have high-risk mental health symptoms and 1.6 times more likely to have mild-risk mental health symptoms … Continue reading →

Why People Make New Year’s Resolutions

The custom of making a New Year’s resolution goes back farther than you might think! According to History.com, the ancient Babylonians are said to be the first people to make New Year’s resolutions, some 4,000 years ago. They were also the first to hold recorded celebrations in honor of the new year, which, for them, began in mid-March when the crops were planted. There was a 12-day festival known as Akitu, when the Babylonians crowned a new king or reaffirmed their loyalty to the reigning king. They also made promises to the gods to pay their debts and return any objects … Continue reading →

Children 6 Months And Up Can Get COVID Vaccine

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that parents check with their pediatrician and community health care providers about how to get their children vaccinated with a COVID-19 vaccine. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) of the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended two COVID-19 vaccines: one for children ages 6 months to 4 years, and one for ages 6 months to 5 years. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) supports this recommendation and encourage pediatricians to promote vaccination and give COVID-19 vaccines. Authorization of the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines for children ages 6 months and older … Continue reading →

CDC Has Positive Parenting Tips for Parents of Teenagers

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated their positive parenting tips. There are several different categories that parents can read – depending upon the age of their children. Here are the recommendations for parents of teenagers between ages 15-17. According to the CDC, this is a time of changes for how teenagers think, feel, and interact with others, and how their bodies grow. Most girls will be physically mature by now, and most will have completed puberty. Boys might still be maturing physically during this time.  Your teen might have concerns about their body size, shape or weight. … Continue reading →