Tag Archives: puberty

Puberty Can Be Emotionally Overwhelming to Adolescents

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Parents may have forgotten what it was like to go through puberty. According to Psychology Today writer David Schwartz LMFT, puberty can be emotionally overwhelming to adolescents. Your tween or teen may be experiencing emotional difficulty as their body changes. According to David Schwarts LMFT, adolescents start to experience a whole new world of feelings when they reach puberty. They start to have emotions, recognizing their own sexuality and longing for closeness with others of their own age. This can create an overwhelming sense of change and uncertainty. Many adolescents aren’t sure what is happening to them. Parents can help … Continue reading →

Should a Severely Disabled Girl Be Allowed to Grow Up?

It’s a question I would never have considered possible. But today I read an article that was both fascinating and troubling. PEOPLE magazine reported the heart-wrenching story of a nine-year-old girl with severe disabilities, and her parent’s controversial decision to use hormones to halt her growth and physical maturation. (PEOPLE, “Girl, Interrupted,” January 22, 2007, by Macon Morehouse.) Ashley, from Seattle, has static encephalopathy, a condition of the brain which has left her developmentally like an infant. She is unable to walk, speak, and is typically seen propped with pillows, because she dislikes being strapped to her wheelchair in an … Continue reading →

Will My Child Outgrow ADHD? Looking Ahead to the Teenage Years

Since many of the behaviors associated with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are child-like, including impulsivity and forgetfulness, often parents suppose (or hope) that their child will eventually grow out of it. But statistically, your son or daughter with ADHD is likely to struggle with the condition well into the teenage years and beyond. And some children are not even diagnosed until adolescence. That’s because what seemed initially like childish recklessness becomes a more obvious concern as the child matures and cannot stop the behaviors. Studies have shown that 80% of children with ADHD will continue to have symptoms of inattention, … Continue reading →

When Does A Child Become A Teenager?

It used to be that a teenager was a child whose age ended with the suffix “teen”. Yet today many parents are finding that their 10 and 11 year olds are acting like teenagers. In today’s technology world children are bombarded with adult information from the television, Internet, and movies. These influences along with peer groups and environmental pressures are forcing children to grow up faster. Take a look at the girls clothing department and you will see that the fashions mimic those of teenage girls. Yet the cause isn’t completely environmental. A recent study by the American Academy of … Continue reading →

Precocious Puberty: How it Could Affect Your Child

Precocious Puberty is a condition where a child enters into his or her sexual development too early. What is not commonly known is that children with neurological disorders of every kind are twenty times more likely to experience early-onset puberty than neuro-typical kids. A study found that children with various forms of autistic disorder typically have higher levels of testosterone in their family members than that of non-autistic children. This elevated level of testosterone has been shown to be a risk factor, and it’s prenatal. What is too early? For girls, any signs of sexual development prior to age eight … Continue reading →