Helping Your Teen Manage Social Anxiety
For teens with social anxiety, each day brings a battle inside their brains: a chronic sense of dread, constant self-criticism and fear of humiliation. Their anxiety may be triggered by walking down a crowded hallway at school, being called on in class, talking on the phone, or any other situation that involves interacting with others. […]
Why Confidence is so Important for Teens
Here’s a cool, little-known fact about the word confidence: it comes from the Latin fidere, which means “to trust.” If you’ve used the Lucero App, you might have seen this word before. Hint: It’s the title of Island 2 because the 28-day experience is designed to help improve your sense of confidence. You could say […]
5 Myths About Teen Mental Health
There’s no doubt that teen mental health is in crisis. Since 2007, rates of teen depression and suicide have risen by 60%. Self-harm, anxiety and other mood disorders also rose sharply during the same period. And while the COVID-19 pandemic made things worse for many, teen mental health was in decline before 2020, making it […]
4 Ways Your Teen Can Practice Mindful Breathing
Mindful breathing is simple: Inhale. Exhale. Pay attention. Repeat. Can something so simple really make a difference to teens? A recent study of nearly 400 11th-graders says yes. The more students practiced mindful breathing techniques, the more they reported feeling capable of managing stress. Lead researcher Deborah Schussler says that’s because mindful breathing buys teens […]
Stress Strategies for Teens
Teenagers now report higher stress levels than almost any other age group, according to a new report from the American Institute of Stress. Teens feel stressed for lots of reasons, including academic pressure, negative thoughts and feelings about themselves, family financial problems, or the illness or death of loved ones. And teens deal with this […]
Turning Negative Self-Talk into Confidence
“I can’t believe I missed that goal. I suck at hockey.” “I’m so fat. Nobody will ever like me.” “I’m going to bomb my algebra test… and probably the whole semester.” If you\’re the parent of a teenager, chances are, you hear more than your fair share of negative self-talk. All teens (and let’s face […]
The Family as a Protective Factor
Protective Factors are attributes in families that increase health and well-being. We could take that a bit further and state that family and community in and of themselves can be Protective Factors. Families who establish and maintain healthy habits, support each other, and engage in community are more likely to live more satisfying and fulfilling […]
Raising Your Teen to Have Self-Compassion
“In this incredibly competitive society of ours, how many of us truly feel good about ourselves?” asks author and self-compassion researcher Dr. Kristin Neff. It’s a sobering question, especially when we’re talking about teens. The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry identifies “negative thoughts or feelings about themselves” as one of the top causes […]
6 Strategies to Simplify Your Teen’s Life
It’s no secret that today’s teens are stressed. According to surveys conducted by the nonprofit Challenge Success, 95% of middle and high school students are sleep deprived, 77% experience stress-related health symptoms, and 63% say they are “constantly worried” about academics. Researchers attribute rising teen stress levels to the same factors that drive adult stress, […]
6 Ways to Get Your Teen To Sleep More
The pandemic has upended the lives of teens in many ways, but one of the most serious effects has been on their sleep schedules. Even before COVID, only about a third of teens got the 8-10 hours that the National Sleep Foundation says is essential. Then the pandemic shattered teens’ routines and caused anxiety to […]
