News Reel 2

Recent world events are causing a lot of anxiety - particularly with children and young adults. Screenagers posted an informative article, featured below, about how to determine what action should be taken in regards to anxiety. If you have a loved one struggling with anxiety, please contact Tamara Ancona, MA, LPC at (678) 297-0708 for an evaluation, and to discuss the best treatment options available. Anxious feelings are understandably very high right now in youth given COVID-19. My daughter is a senior in high school and gets waves of many emotions right now--such as anxious feelings related to deciding on a college or sad feelings thinking about all the things she will miss from not being able to go back to her school. All kids have stories right now of things they are fearing, regretting, missing out on, obsessing over, and much more. As a physician, I thought it would be helpful to give insight into the difference between anxious feelings vs. clinical anxiety, and then to provide examples of [...]

Children and Screens cordially invites you, your friends and your network to join our series of three virtual workshops for parents featuring leading interdisciplinary experts on the topic of “Children and Screens During COVID-19” via Zoom. Parents can register through our website www.childrenandscreens.com. Hear from the country's leading pediatricians, child psychiatrists, child psychologists, neuroscientists, educators, and parenting experts to learn: The "Ask the Experts" series will focus on different developmental age groups, beginning with young children on April 28th at 12:00-1:30 EDT, moderated by Dimitri Christakis, pediatrician and editor in chief of the leading medical/science journal JAMA Pediatrics. Other panelists include:  John S. Hutton, Attending Pediatrician, Director of the Reading & Literacy Discovery Center at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Brandon T. McDaniel, Research Scientist at Parkview Mirro Center for Research & Innovation Ellen Wartella, Professor of Communication Studies, Psychology, Human Development and Social Policy; and Medical Social Sciences at Northwestern University RSVP here The second workshop for school-aged children (K-8) will take place on May 6th at 12:00-1:30 EDT, moderated by pediatrician Colleen [...]

While we all learn to cope with living a digital life during this pandemic it brings up questions about the effects all the screen time will have on us and our futures. Screenagers explores the this in the article below: Understandably most young people are on screens a ton right now. Thank goodness there are all sorts of great things made possible via screen time. But, what are the potential costs of loads of certain screen time activities on their brain health and mood? Are there ways to do changes in tech time that might help them feel better — even while keeping the same total amount of screen time? Clifford Sussman, MD, is a psychiatrist for children and adolescents in Washington, DC, and he is well known for his work in treating those with problematic internet and video game use. He and I have presented together at the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Conference and have shared ideas over the years. Sussman and I were talking last [...]

As adults we frequently discuss the things we're stressed about. But what about our kids? Particularly teens and tweens? Screenagers tackles how to talk to this age group about their stress and ways to help them cope. Teens and tweens often tell me how they talk with each other about their stress levels. The other day I passed out an anonymous survey for reactions from teens to Screenagers NEXT CHAPTER, and one high schooler wrote: "It was really helpful to hear someone other than teens talk about teen stress." When people get asked to rank their level of perceived stress, teens on average report higher levels than adults. There are many reasons teens report stress, including academic-related stress and stress from relationships with peers and family. There is also the stress of trying to feel "good enough," or trying to belong to a peer group, just to name a few. Screen time and stress can be intertwined. Youth tell me many positive ways screen time helps them to cope with [...]

Bullying is a prevalent issue in schools today. With everything else going on, how do we help kids battle against bullying? In the article below, written by Clint Fletcher, and posted on The Meadows website, we learn more about helping kids cope.Kids and teenagers are back in school, and that means homework, carpool, school lunches, football games … and bullying. The problem has gained more attention in recent years, but despite the spotlight, a significant portion of children and teens are still affected. According to the most recent School Crime Supplement by the National Center for Education Statistics and Bureau of Justice, about 20% of American students between the ages 12 to 18 experience some form of bullying. On top of this, the latest Youth Behavior Assessment from the CDC states that 19% of high school students report being bullied within a one-year period of the survey.Bullying can be physical, verbal, relational, or even online, and it isn’t always easy for parents to spot. But what causes it, what are the long-term [...]

As if the teen years aren't hard enough - kids face a myriad of different emotions. Our friends at R&A Therapeutic Partners wrote the article below describing the challenges faced when teens have depression and the difference between the genders. The teenage years can be challenging. Between physical changes in the body, intense peer pressure, and an increased sense of social anxiety, teenagers often have difficulties finding their place. Many want to fit in while others want to stand out, even rebel. Teen depression is also becoming an alarmingly frequent trait of those transition years. Recent research has found that the rate of depression is increasing and that there are distinct gender differences in teen depression. Transition Years The teen years are a natural transition from being a child to growing into an adult. While women of all ages tend to be more aware of their appearance than men, particularly in terms of how others see them, most young people start to develop a heightened sense of socialization as they [...]