Just as there is a spurt in height during the adolescent period, there is a spurt in identity development as well.  Identity in teens is a lot like a building on a Hollywood movie set.  The exteriors, hair, clothes, and makeup, set the tone while the important work of identity development occurs behind the scenes.  Even teen facial expressions, ranging from grimaces to sarcastic glances, keep parents and adults from seeing past the attitude revealing the fact that teens find out who they are not long before they discover who they are.  In other words, teens will experiment with dress and behavior in order to “try on” adult identities.  For most, this is a temporary fix until transitional challenges like getting a first job or moving away to college become the formative influences on identity.  But for others, actually fewer than the media tends to portray, oppositionality becomes an easier path to identity formation.   For those teens, either behaving like a psuedo-adult with extreme independence from parenteal limits, or negative identifications with a drug using crowd offer a “quick fix” to the identity formation challenge.

Why aren’t we successful as parents simply controlling these independent behaviors and filling teens’ time with things we want them to identify with , maybe religious activities or sports?  Research suggests that teens still engage in identity exploration even when strict limits and strong guidance from parents are set in place.  Stronger authoritarian messages about who teens will become can cause identity exploration to go “underground” even if it is not revealed in black tee shirts and torn jeans.  More frightening behaviors such as self-cutting can mark an identity struggle that has turned into depression because the teen can’t find a way to talk about these confusing changes in his or her sense of self.

Rather than using the same method of influence over teens used when they were much younger, parents who acknowledge that the advice or limits have to make sense in a teenager’s mind play a much greater role in the outcome of the situation.   Examples and parent predictions have to be relevant to the adolescent’s world in order to sink in.  For example, being critical of the “death warmed over” look of black eyeliner against a chalky white blush by making statements about embarassing herself or what other people will say won’t go nearly as far as asking why she thinks a friend of hers has started wearing her makeup this same way.  So, while teenagers continue to hide the key that unlocks the door to their inner selves during this adolescent stage, we can let them know that we understand the challenge they face in finding themselves and how lonely it can be while they are stuck behind the door of identity development.

The study appears in the December issue of The Annals of Pharmacotherapy.

The researchers did a retrospective study of 318 Medicaid-covered adolescents who were admitted to three major psychiatric hospitals in Maryland because of attempted suicide or suicidal behaviors.

They examined hospital medical records for the adolescents and recorded all medication changes — including additions, discontinuations and changed dosages that occurred during the hospital stay.  The researchers then identified which patients were readmitted to any hospital in Maryland within 30 days of their discharge. The study found that 78 percent of the inpatients had one or more changes in their medication, typically the addition of an antidepressant, mood stabilizer or antipsychotic.

The study also found that adolescents who were prescribed three or more psychotropic medications were 2.6 times more likely to be readmitted to the hospital within 30 days.

Full article can be read at http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091217141320.htm

However, the neuroscientists also found not all antidepressants worked in the same way.   Dr Jhaveri said surprisingly, the class of antidepressants that increase levels of the neurotransmitter called serotonin – Prozac is a common example – fails to stimulate neurogenesis. “Norepinephrine is basically binding directly onto the precursors which then initiate a signal which leads to the production of more neurons,” she said.

Using rodent models the research, published today in the Journal of Neuroscience , established that selectively blocking the re-uptake of norepinephrine directly activated hippocampal stem cells thereby discovering a much larger pool of dormant precursors in the hippocampus than previously thought to exist.

This research may provide insights into treatment for depression and understanding of its underlying etiology.

• Violence:The incidents of violence shown on the news, in movies and prime time TV has increased and become more graphic in nature.  This can lead to desensitization to pain and suffering as well as increase anxiety.
• Sexual content:A report was issued in 1996 citing that kids were exposed to at least eight sexual references per hour during “family hour”.  The results were found that such exposure can affect adolescents’ moral judgment. These statistics have no doubt increased over the past fourteen years.
• Body image:The promotion of unrealistic expectations of what’s considered acceptable physical appearance for both boys and girls can be a catalyst for the rise in eating disorders and decline in self esteem.
• Physical health and school performance:The average American child spends more than twenty hours per week watching TV as well as additional time on the internet, playing video games and using a cell phone. This takes time away from homework  and exercise contributing to the increase in childhood obesity and poor school performance. Parents are encouraged to have a proactive involvement in their child’s media involvement.The beneficial effects are early preparedness for learning, exposure to social issues,  the arts and other healthy entertainment.Remember to take notice and be interested in  what your child is doing.  Keep communications open and offer alternatives that are within their frame of interest.

Please visit our Kids & Media section for tips on how to make sure how to protect children from media dangers and suggestions for positive media.

I like to think of any problem as a learning problem.  That is, I assume that either there is either insufficient reward, a developmental problem, or some combination of the two when a child is not learning a skill that they need to acquire.  Fox example, if a child does not clean their room, it is possible that a parent’s providing a privilege or monetary reward would help them learn to clean their room more often.

If a reward does not work, then it could be a developmental issue. Briefly stated, a developmental perspective assumes that a child cannot learn certain things until their nervous systems and bodies have developed to a point where they are ready to do so.  In spite of the best teaching strategies, we probably would not be able to teach even a gifted 7-year-old child to do Algebra.  The brain’s abstract thinking processes have not developed enough to support the acquisition of such skills.

In his book, The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog, Bruce Perry, M.D., details his work  with children who have been severely abused and/or neglected.  However, one of the outcomes of his work, the area of the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics (NMT) has implications for all children (see, for example, www.reclaiming.com and  ChildTrauma Academy.com).  Briefly stated, Perry and his colleagues have devised developmental rating scales that allow them to predict what interventions will work best for the child.

These interventions sometimes include verbal therapy, but they often include more basic means such as music, movement, breathing exercises, and drumming when the child does not appear developmentally ready for verbal techniques.

When I was a child, I was a good athlete.  I excelled in baseball, football, basketball, and golf, but I did not learn to swim until I was 26-years-old.  I tried very hard, and my parents provided swimming lessons for many years, but my development in this area was far behind my development in other sports, as well as in academic areas.

In brief, then, learning encompasses all areas of life, and some of us learn quickly in some others, and not so quickly in others.  A thorough assessment of all of your child’s strengths and weakness should help you provide them with the intervention that is most appropriate for their developmental needs.

Remember my example with swimming, however, and be aware that your labor may not bear fruit immediately!

• Studies suggest that over 60 percent of children are “caffeinated” each day with sodas and stimulant drinks.  Caffeine can have a “half life” of up to 6 hours in children, meaning that its stimulant effects can keep working hours past the last drink.
• Around 45 percent of elementary school aged children have TV’s in their rooms, and late night TV watching is shown to make it harder for kids to go to sleep (Of course, we’re talking about after the TV is turned off).
• Stress and worry can be self-consuming in kids the same as in adults.  One of our major jobs as parents is to teach our children how to manage and ease stress on a daily basis.

Well, its easy enough to understand how the problem looks.  Kids either lay in bed and toss and turn or just have trouble settling in for the night.  But what about some solutions?   From talking to parents for years about this problem, the following suggestions have had the best results:

• Cut down on computer “screen time” for everyone.  Its tempting to use that precious time in the late evening to check those last emails of the day, but both parents and children do better with less electronic activity in the late evening.
• Stay close.  Humans have huddled together since ancient times at night, and children’s insecurity and fear shows this need.  Ten minutes of quiet sitting or reading can help ease the separation for the night.
• Senses such as smell and hearing are “sensitized” at night.  So why not use this to your advantage.  Finding a relaxing essential oil (not the candle burning variety of course) and a CD of sleep music can help.  Some popular favorites include Dreamscape – Lullabies from Around the World and The Swan and the Mermaid

Moving past a negative sleep cycle takes time, strategy, and persistence.  Have patience and stick with your plan and the Sandman won’t be such a stranger anymore.  [Click here for more information on kids & sleep]

As a parent, you try to teach your children to use money wisely. Then, when children hit the teenage years, they seem to forget everything youíve taught them. This may be partly due to peer pressure and trying to find their place in the world. However, no matter how much they think they need the newest in name-brand things, sometimes itís simply not within the family budget.

Include your teen in discussions about family finances. Let them see how much income the family brings in, how much monthly expenses are, the amount put into saving, and how much is left as discretionary funds. Once they understand where the money goes, it may help them realize that youíre not trying to make their life difficult; you simply donít have the extra to buy them everything they want.

Give them a specific amount of money each month to pay for their needs. Show them the importance of setting up a budget to ensure they have money when they need it rather than spending it as soon as they get it. Help them make wise decisions about the money they have access to but donít let them think youíre there with your pocketbook open whenever they blow their budget and run out of money.

Suggest they get a part-time job to cover those items which arenít in the family budget. Have them earn the money they want by doing extra chores. Help them learn that you have to work to bring in money to your household and they will have to do the same thing in the future. The sooner they learn the way the world works in relation to finances the better off theyíll be.

Ask your teenager to help you make a menu plan and grocery list for the next weekís meals. Encourage them to go with you to the store. Show them how to use coupons or comparison shop so they get the best price for the items on your list. This will teach them how to do the same thing when theyíre responsible for buying their own things.

Don’t forget to teach your teen to save. Theyíll thank you for teaching them about how to handle money after theyíre out on their own. Of course, until that happens, you can expect then to ask you to help fund whatever they want. Being proactive by expecting your teen to use their own money may be your best bet on how to address your teenagerís big spending behavior.  [More Information On This Topic]