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Saying “no” to your child isn't easy. “Everybody else is doing it, why can’t I?” they cry. How can you have the boundary for “no means no” without being the “bad guy”? When saying "no" to your kids, remember that an explanation is definitely required, and your answer ought to be in line with your other behaviors. Whenever your adolescent asks why she can’t go to the party, tell her the truth. “I know when I was your age, I went to an event where there was lots of alcohol drinking, and I told my mom there was no alcohol there.” Experience demonstrates to your children that you DO understand, as long as you inform them about the consequences. “I came home drunk and threw up all night, and it really wasn’t worth it.” For younger children, make certain your explanation is within the realm of their comprehension - they usually don’t possess reasoning skills yet, so an answer of “because you might get hurt” will do until they are old enough to understand. For ol...

In most U.S. States, there isn't any provision for revoking or reversing the termination of parental rights other than under specific situations such as fraud, duress, coercion, etc. Because termination is really a legal concern decided by the court, you might want to talk to and/or retain the services of a competent lawyer who's educated in family law matters where you live to examine the legal court action taken to end your parental rights. If you want help in finding and/or paying for a lawyer, the American Bar Association supplies a lawyer referral service at http://www.abanet.org/legalservices/lris/directory/home.html and the Consumers' Guide to Legal Help at http://www.abanet.org/legalservices/findlegalhelp/home.cfm provides pro bono attorney referrals and more. Should you believe that your rights may have been violated in the termination of parental rights case against you, you may want to inquire if the agency has an appeals process or an ombudsman. Nume...

In this post, we will look at some important tips for single moms raising boys: 1. Accept your child's differences. 2. As your son matures, investigate local boys groups or clubs that he could join such as Cub Scouts. Don't be intimidated by such sponsored events as father-child boat races or picnics. Let the troop leader know that with the number of single parent families, you would be comfortable if the den would acknowledge parent-child events. But the biggest benefit of scouting that should be experienced by all males is that initiation ritual that welcomes them into the pack. 3. Be a little creative in helping your son learn guy stuff. For instance, many single moms report concern over their child's using the potty while sitting, or playing with their makeup. Chances are your son won't spend the rest of his life peeing sitting down while wearing mascara. Homosexuality doesn't exist because you didn't monitor the morning makeup sessions! But ...

Here are some parenting strategies to help fathers and mothers raise daughters who will be successful in all aspects of their life: Moms and dads strive to raise daughters who will be independent, confident, and self-reliant. In a society where it can be more difficult to achieve success as a woman than a man, parents often feel the need to start their girls on the right path at a very young age. 1. Allow your child to be her own person. 2. Allow your child to see fully who you are. 3. Always know where your child is, who she is with, and what she is doing. Know her friends and the moms and dads of those friends. Have regular check-in times. 4. As a parent, try to be a coach – not a judge. Coaches encourage, have high expectations, praise, criticize, and set limits, but kids accept coaching because they believe coaches are in an alliance with them and on the same team. Judging parents direct their efforts at finding misdoings and punishing appropriately. Moms an...

A few questions for you mom: Would you rather be the recipient of 459 or 182? Would you be concerned if your child texted someone LMIRL? Are you a MOS? The questions may seem like a foreign language because NALOPKT. Texting has become so common among teenagers, it's almost rare to see one not typing out a text-message on a cell phone, but moms and dads may have more reason for concern than just the cell phone bill. Those texts could contain coded drug messages. As a mother or father, it's hard to keep up with lingo. If you find a text on your teen's cell that says, "I want a burrito"...normally, that wouldn't be cause for alarm. But what if we told you that is text code for ecstasy? And a message that says, "Has anyone seen Tina" …that's code for meth. "I’m fixin a BLT" …that means rolling a blunt. "I want a quart of Ben and Jerry's" actually refers to the drug Ice. Sounds strange – I know. Police ...

By the time they are adolescents, your kids should have a pretty good idea of what to expect in terms of parental goals and behavior limits. But even the well-trained youngster may be tempted to push boundaries or be led astray by friends to do something he shouldn't. When that happens, a mother or father cannot afford to sit back and pretend that nothing has happened, hoping that it never occur again. Instead, you must be vigilant and take action to reinforce all that you have taught your children already from the time they were toddlers. Don't give in to their wheedling or your own time constraints. Take the necessary time now to train your adolescents properly, and that will mean issuing appropriate discipline. The art of adolescent discipline falls into three categories: The first is training or guidance. We discipline our children when we set household rules, place limits on their behavior (such as curfews), and monitor their social activities with friends...

R esearch reveals that teenagers who text 120 times a day or more (which many teens do nowadays) are more likely to have had sex or used alcohol and drugs than teens who don't send as many messages. The study is not suggesting that "hyper-texting" leads to sex, drinking or drugs, but it's shocking to see an apparent link between excessive messaging and this kind of risk-taking behavior. The study asserts that a significant number of teenagers are very susceptible to peer-pressure – and also have permissive or absent parents. The study was conducted at 20 public high schools in the Cleveland area, and is based on confidential paper surveys of more than 4,200 high school students. It found that about 1 in 5 students were hyper-texters (i.e, those who text more than 120 times a day) and about 1 in 9 are hyper-networkers (i.e., those who spend 3 or more hours a day on Facebook and other social networking websites). About 1 in 25 are both hyper-texters and hype...

Gulping cough syrup for an instant "buzz" certainly is not a new thing for adolescents that have raided the medicine cabinet for a quick, cheap, and legal high. But unfortunately, this dangerous and potentially deadly practice is on the rise. So it's important for moms and dads to understand the risks and know how to prevent their children from intentionally overdosing on cough and cold medicine. Before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) replaced the narcotic codeine with DXM as an over-the-counter (OTC) cough suppressant in the 1970s, adolescents were simply guzzling down cough syrup for a quick buzz. Over the years, adolescents discovered that they still could get high by taking large doses of any OTC medicine containing DEXTROMETHORPHAN (also called DXM). DXM-containing products — tablets, capsules, gel caps, lozenges, and syrups — are labeled DM, cough suppressant, or Tuss (or contain "tuss" in the title). Medicines containin...

"How can I make sure my children understand the seriousness of certain situations (e.g., using drugs, talking to strangers on the internet, etc.) without yelling and coming on so strong and aggressive that I damage their self-esteem." When your youngster's safety is at risk — whether he's run into the street, reached for an open flame, or gotten dangerously close to a pool — yelling, screaming, or crying out is a perfectly normal – and appropriate – response. At that moment, you would do anything possible to get your youngster's attention and get him out of harm's way. After a parent’s “screaming-yelling” episode, it's natural for children to get upset — and for you to want to apologize. But the truth is this: your children are getting upset in response to the fear and urgency in your voice, not because you've been "too strict." At times like these, you should comfort them, but without apologizing. Give your youngster a hug and sa...

Disruptive Behavior Disorder is an expression used to describe a set of externalizing negativistic behaviors that co-occur during childhood and which are referred to collectively in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) as: "Attention-Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders". There are three subgroups of externalizing behaviors: • Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) • Conduct Disorder (CD) • Oppositional Defiant disorder (ODD) Treatment for Oppositional Defiant disorder and CD at the clinic is based on the premise that these behaviors are the result of a combination of a metabolic dysfunction and environmental factors. We approach treatment in a similar way to our treatment of kids and teens with ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER. There is however an added emphasis on Counseling and Behavior Modification techniques. Please read our treatment model for ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER. O...