Our teenagers are suffering more than ever. College counseling centers are overwhelmed, parents are worried, and mental health issues are increasingly common in young people between the ages of 12 and 20. Parents are particularly concerned about how to help their kids achieve a safe, healthy, and fulfilling college experience in light of soaring rates of depression and anxiety in young people. Mood Prep 101: A Parent's Guide to Preventing Depression and Anxiety in College-Bound Teens answers the question most parents have - "What can we do?" - when it comes to college-bound teens who may be vulnerable to anxiety and depression. Written with humor and compassion by award-winning psychologist and psychotherapist Carol Landau, this timely book empowers parents by providing strategies for helping their children psychologically prepare for college and adulthood, as well as by addressing and alleviating the anxiety parents themselves may feel about kids leaving home for the first time. Young people need a solid foundation of parental support in order to succeed at college; as such, Landau shows parents how they can promote healthy communication and problem-solving skills, and how they can help young people learn to better regulate emotions and tolerate distress. Landau also describes stressors typical amongst college students, and explains how to identify vulnerabilities to anxiety and depression, including perfectionism, social isolation, and the feeling of being "different". Finally, the book sheds light on some of the risky behaviors commonly found on today's college campuses, such as substance use and unsafe sexual relationships, and how they can exacerbate or even trigger anxiety and depression in young people. Landau concludes by calling on parents and educators to back away from the stressful, competitive focus of the college admissions process and turn instead to the values of curiosity, collaboration and empathy.

This concise and highly accessible book contains everything that parents and busy professionals need to know about ADHD.The author describes the spectrum of ADHD, the co-occurring symptoms, and common difficulties that parents face. The rest of the book focuses on solutions, based around four rules. Rule number one is keeping it positive: punishments can change behavior, but only positive approaches can improve attitude. Rule number two is keeping it calm: it's difficult thinking clearly enough to solve problems logically if you are feeling overwhelmed. Rule number three is keeping it organized: this rule relates particularly to the child's school life. Rule number four is to keep doing rules one to three. Finally, Dr. Kutscher discusses the role of medication for treating ADHD. The concluding chapter summarizes the information covered and can also be read as a complete, freestanding text. Useful checklists and further reading recommendations are also included.Realistic and optimistic, this book is the ideal source of information and advice for parents and professionals who are trying to keep up with children who are living without brakes.

"A remarkable book . . . I found myself thinking that all expectant and new parents should read it." -Michelle Slater A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice In Raising a Rare Girl, Lanier explores how to defy the tyranny of normal and embrace parenthood as a spiritual practice that breaks us open in the best of ways. Like many women of her generation, when Heather Lanier was expecting her first child she did everything by the book in the hope that she could create a SuperBaby, a supremely healthy human destined for a high-achieving future. But her daughter Fiona challenged all of Lanier's preconceptions. Born with an ultra-rare syndrome known as Wolf-Hirschhorn, Fiona received a daunting prognosis: she would experience significant developmental delays and might not reach her second birthday. The diagnosis obliterated Lanier's perfectionist tendencies, along with her most closely held beliefs about certainty, vulnerability, God, and love. With tiny bits of mozzarella cheese, a walker rolled to library story time, a talking iPad app, and a whole lot of pop and reggae, mother and daughter spend their days doing whatever it takes to give Fiona nourishment, movement, and language. Loving Fiona opens Lanier up to new understandings of what it means to be human, what it takes to be a mother, and above all, the aching joy and wonder that come from embracing the unique life of her rare girl.

It's hard to decide which is more frightening--the "food" teenagers enjoy, or the things they say about their bodies. Whether it's your son's passion for chips and soda or your daughter's announcement that she "feels fat," kids' attitude about how they look and what they should eat often seem devoid of common sense. In a world where television and school cafeterias push super-sized sandwiches while magazines feature pencil-thin models, many teens feel pressured to starve themselves and others eat way too much. Blending her experience as the mother of four with results from a survey of nearly 5,000 teens, Dr. Diane Neumark-Sztainer shows you how to respond constructively to "fat talk," counteract negative media messages, and give your kids the straight story about nutrition and calories, the dangers of dieting, and eating right when they're away from home. Full of examples illustrating the challenges teens face today, this upbeat and insightful book is packed with great ideas that will help kids everywhere feel better about their looks and make healthier choices about eating and exercise.

Praise for the author: 'Dyregrov's writing is clear in its description, and explicit in its advice, and demonstrates that the daunting task of helping a child through grief is both manageable and rewarding' - Bereavement Care 'This insightful text will be of great help to all who care for pre-school children - parents, kindergarten teachers, ministers of religion, police, welfare workers - the list is endless. If they learn the values reflected in this small book, then bereaved children everywhere will grow up with far fewer hang-ups about the only certainty in life.' - from the foreword by Professor William Yule It is a common misconception that pre-school children are not capable of experiencing grief in the same way that older children do. Grief in Young Children challenges this assumption, demonstrating that although young children may not express grief in the same way as older children, they still need to be supported through loss. Illustrated throughout with case examples, the author explores young children's reactions to death and loss, both immediately after the event and over time. For example, young children may engage in `magic thinking', believing that wishing that someone were dead can actually cause death, which leads to feelings of guilt. Full of practical advice on issues such as how to keep children in touch with their memories, answer their questions, allay their fears and explore their feelings through play, this accessible book enables adults to work with children to develop an acceptance of grief and an understanding of death and loss. This book is essential reading for parents, carers, counsellors and teachers, and is complemented by the companion volume Grief in Children: A Handbook for Adults, Second Edition, which caters for school-age children, also written by Atle Dyregrov and published by Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

With anxiety at epidemic levels among our children, Anxious Kids, Anxious Parents offers a contrarian yet effective approach to help children and teens push through their fears, worries, and phobias to ultimately become more resilient, independent, and happy. How do you manage a child who gets stomachaches every school morning, who refuses after-school activities, or who is trapped in the bathroom with compulsive washing? Children like these put a palpable strain on frustrated, helpless parents and teachers. And there is no escaping the problem: One in every five kids suffers from a diagnosable anxiety disorder. Unfortunately, when parents or professionals offer help in traditional ways, they unknowingly reinforce a child's worry and avoidance. From their success with hundreds of organizations, schools, and families, Reid Wilson, PhD, and Lynn Lyons, LICSW, share their unconventional approach of stepping into uncertainty in a way that is currently unfamiliar but infinitely successful. Using current research and contemporary examples, the book exposes the most common anxiety-enhancing patterns-including reassurance, accommodation, avoidance, and poor problem solving-and offers a concrete plan with 7 key principles that foster change. And, since new research reveals how anxious parents typically make for anxious children, the book offers exercises and techniques to change both the children's and the parental patterns of thinking and behaving. This book challenges our basic instincts about how to help fearful kids and will serve as the antidote for an anxious nation of kids and their parents.

How much childcare can I realistically take on at my age? How will I fill the day if the child is bored? Can I cope with two children at a time? What about all these new theories I hear about, how can I get up to date? What equipment will I need to buy, and who should pay for it? A Grandparent's Survival Guide to Childcare provides the answers to these and many more questions. Written by a doctor and a Montessori teacher both with extensive experience as grandparents themselves, this down-to-earth guide provides vital information on deciding what you will offer in the way of childcare, how to sort out who will do what (and pay for what), how to structure a day of childcare, how to ensure that their days with you are as full of fun and learning as the rest of your grandchild's week, and what to do to prevent accidents and deal with emergencies should they arise. This book will ensure that you develop that very special relationship with the grandchildren you care for and have fun doing it!

'Uplifting and honest, [Tender is] about resilience and learning to look after oneself so as to be better able to care for others.' KATE MOSSE 'A beautiful and important book that is both deeply engaging and usefully practical. I loved it.' CATHY RENTZENBRINK 'An insightful and well-timed book ... forces us to confront the stereotypes - and prejudices - we hold.' SUNDAY TIMES 'profoundly important...full of wisdom and bright insights on what it really means to love someone, by a fearless and generous writer. ' CLOVER STROUD 'A beautiful and timely reminder that each and every one of us has the ability to care, the capacity for empathy, and the potential to grow.' ANDY PUDDICOMBE, FOUNDER OF HEADSPACE 'A wonderful book: compassionate, honest, carefully-reasoned and genuinely helpful... This will benefit many people.' KATHERINE MAY, author of WINTERING 'An invaluable tool for any invisible carers or anyone who wants to learn how to better support their loved ones... we ALL have many, many things to learn from Penny's beautiful, wise, charming, thoughtful words' - SCARLETT CURTIS, Sunday Times bestselling author 'Moving and beautifully written, nuanced and wise, alert to every paradox at the heart of love. A hugely important book not only for current or future carers, but anyone learning to accept that life tends to resist our control.' - OLIVIA SUDJIC, author of EXPOSURE 'Tender captures the powerful capacity of people to care for others, and all the heartbreaking and heartwarming complexity that this involves. Penny brings the crucial, yet often overlooked, role of caring into our collective consciousness and, in doing so, demonstrates what it means to be human.' -DR EMMA HEPBURN, author of A TOOLKIT FOR MODERN LIFE 'Penny Wincer's TENDER manages to combine both unromanticised honesty about the realities of care with a genuine uplifting hopefulness... is a must-read.'- RUTH WHIPPMAN, author of THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS We are all likely - at some point in our lives - to face the prospect of caring for another, whether it's a parent, child or partner. It is estimated that there are 7 million people in the UK caring for loved ones. And yet these are the unpaid, unsung people whose number is rising all the time. In Tender: the imperfect art of caring, Penny Wincer combines her own experiences as a carer with the experiences of others to offer real and transformative tools and insights for navigating a situation that many of us are either facing or will face at some time. Penny Wincer has twice been a carer: first to her mother, and now as a single parent to her autistic son. Tender shows how looking after oneself is a fundamental part of caring for another, and describes the qualities that we can look to cultivate in ourselves through what may otherwise feel to be an exhausting task. Weaving her lived experience with research into resilience, perfectionism and self-compassion, Penny combines the stories of other carers alongside those who receive support - offering an often surprising and hopeful perspective. Penny hosts a podcast Not Too Busy To Write.

"Over 400,000 copies sold! "Socially, mentally, and spiritually, teenagers face a variety of pressures and stresses each day. Despite these pressures, it is still parents who can influence teens the most, and "The Five Love Languages of Teeneagers "equips parents to make the most of that opportunity.

In this adaptation of the #1 "New York Times "bestseller "The Five Love Languages"(r)" "(more than 10 million copies sold)," "Dr. Gary Chapman explores the world in which teenagers live, explains their developmental changes, and gives tools to help you identify and appropriately communicate in your teen's love language. Get practical tips for how to:

Express love to your teen effectively

Navigate the key issues in your teen s life, including anger and independence

Set boundaries that are enforced with discipline and consequences

Support and love your teen when he or she fails

Get ready to discover how the principles of the five love languages can really work in the life of your teenage and family."

'Funny, honest and most importantly really, really useful.' - Helen McGinn, author of The Knackered Mother's Wine Club So, you're losing your sh*t with your kids. You scream, you shout, you snap at them. You're cranky and irritable more often than you'd like to admit. You know how you want to parent; you want to be a calmer, more rational and intentional parent, but no matter how hard you try, you can't help it. You keep losing your sh*t. Just remember: YOU ARE NOT A BAD PARENT. How to Stop Losing Your Sh*t With Your Kids is as honest and compassionate as it is pragmatic about helping you work through your sh*t to be a more present and positive parent. Increasingly relevant to today's parents, who are more overloaded, overwhelmed, and overworked than ever before, Carla Naumburg has the antidote to the feelings of complete despair and rage. How to Stop Losing Your Sh*t With Your Kids is a simple, accessible and humorous guide to more effective and mindful parenting. 'This book is life-changing; it really will stop you from losing your sh*t with your kids!' - Esther Walker

This volume explores the intersections of welfare, gender and mothering work in the context this political reality. It explores austerity and the policies of neoliberal governments that work to deprive some mothers of their welfare. This volume also explores how motherhood is socially constructed in various social locations and places around the world. Last, it examines different ways of thinking about mothering and what changes to laws and policies are required to assist all who are mothering and provide better support to their families.

Far too many parents face an ongoing struggle to get their kids to eat well, so why is it that French children gladly wolf down all the things our kids hate - the dreaded spinach or broccoli, fish, olives, salad...? In French Kids Eat Everything, Karen Le Billon shares her experience of moving to France and finding the inspiration to transform her family's approach to eating. If you've ever tried hiding healthy foods in your kids' meals, bribing them to finish - or even start - something healthy, or simply given up in exasperation at your child's extensive list of banned foods, this book will strike a chord. It charts the author's enlightening journey from stressed mum of picky eaters, to proud - if somewhat surprised - parent of healthy, happy eaters. Along the way, you'll discover the 'food rules' that help the French foster healthy eating habits, why it's vital to get kids to try the same food many times over, the value of educating your children about food from an early age, why how you eat is just as important as what you eat - and much, much more. With tips, tricks, rules and routines for happy, healthy eaters - plus some fast, tasty recipes to try - this isn't just another tale of Gallic gastronomic superiority but a practical guide to instilling in your kids healthy eating habits that will last them a lifetime (and ensure less stressful mealtimes for you too!).

The Hugging Tree tells the story of a little tree growing all alone on a cliff, by a vast and mighty sea. Through thundering storms and the cold of winter, the tree holds fast. Sustained by the natural world and the kindness and compassion of one little boy, eventually the tree grows until it can hold and shelter others. The resilience of the Hugging Tree calls to mind the potential in all of us: to thrive, despite times of struggle and difficulty. To nurture the little spark of hope and resolve. To dream and to grow, just where we are. A Note to Parents and Caregivers by Elizabeth McCallum provides more information about resilience, and guidelines for building resilience in children.

Tricia Allen, a qualified homeopath, offers a host of practical advice on how to treat illness using natural, homeopathic remedies. Homeopathy differs from conventional medicine in that it does not only alleviate the individual symptoms of an illness, but treats the underlying state to ensure that the disease does not return, something which rarely occurs when using traditional remedies. This guide gives you advice on; what homeopathy is and how to use it; each stage of childhood and how to deal with the complaints that occur at that time of a child's development; the most common childhood illnesses, how to take your own steps to treating them, which homeopathic remedies to use and when to seek medical help and first aid.