A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
To young people in Australia, the online world is a place where the virtual and the real collide. For many teenagers, the internet and mobile phone are their social lifeline. Online technologies are so important to them that teens’ online and offline friendships may be lost if they are not able to text or post [...]
The Australian National Council on Drugs (ANCD) recently sent out an open letter to all principals, urging alcohol NOT TO be included at school fund raisers. Dear Principal I am writing to you as Chairman of the Australian National Council on Drugs (ANCD) to formally seek your assistance and co-operation in not permitting the use, [...]
Leading health organisations have criticised the alcohol industry’s DrinkWise organisation for involving young people in what appears to be largely a promotional exercise. It seems that although DrinkWise claims to be ‘independent', they are in fact heavily involved with the alcohol industry. DrinkWise is funded by the alcohol industry, and according to its website many [...]
Julie Gale, the founder of Kids Free 2B Kids, a website dedicated to letting children develop to their full potential; without exposure to sexualised imagery before they are developmentally ready to process it, recently spoke to the TODAY program on Channel 9 about the battle many parents face when trying to protect their children from [...]
A recent study in the USA, The effectiveness of the motion picture association of America's rating system in screening explicit violence and sex in top-ranked movies from 1950 to 2006, has revealed that the Motion Picture Association of America’s rating system does not reflect the level of violence and sexual imagery contained in a film. [...]
30% of young people are self absorbed How parents can spot a self absorbed teen (teen narcissistic personality disorder) • Fantasies about having exceptional success, attractiveness or power • Expectations of special treatment • Over-emphasis on achievements and exaggeration of one's skills • Exploits other people • Need for constant praise and validation • Does not consider others' feelings • Belief that [...]
It is estimated that 25% of school children suffer at the hands of some kind of bullying to the degree that it affects their mental health and wellbeing. Friday 18 March marked Australia’s first annual community awareness campaign to address bullying. This national initiative puts the spotlight on bystander behaviour. Bullying is not just a [...]
Here are some tips from the National Sleep Foundation on how to make sure a young person gets enough good quality sleep. Set and stick to a sleep schedule. Try to get your teenager to go to bed and wake up at the same times each day. Expose them to bright light in the morning [...]
The National Sleep Foundation (NSF) recently released its 2011 Sleep in America Poll, Exploring Connections with Communications Technology use and Sleep. The poll found that many teenagers from Generation Z (13 to 18 year olds) are using some type of electronic device like a television, computer, video game or mobile phone in the bedroom during [...]
A survey of 16-17 year old WA school students found: 43.3% reported ‘One of the main reasons I drink is to get drunk’. 66.3% reported ‘It is ok to get drunk occasionally’. 50.1% reported ‘Drinking is the best way of relaxing’.* During the time it took to conduct the above survey in WA schools, 46,957 [...]
