A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
Photo by Bevan Gold Swain/Thinkstock - www.slate.com In his 2008 review of Middle Years literature, Dr David Smith identified five key principles to engage and motivate this 10-15 year age group: Relationships Relevance Rigour Resilience Responsibility ...but what does this mean in real and practical terms? This is an age group distinguished by [...]
William Lindesay is trying to stop his over-reliance on video games. When I come home completely exhausted from school, I just want to get away from it all. I go to my room and turn on my console. But when I turn it off, it doesn't take long for me to feel drawn back [...]
© Bubbles Photolibrary / Alamy At Ravenswood School for Girls on Sydney's north shore on a recent Friday, the playgrounds were full of girls who were not texting or even updating their social media status. A large group of year 10 girls was shrieking with delight over a skipping game where at least [...]
One in two teenage boys and girls have used a mobile phone to send a sexually explicit image of themselves, according to the biggest sexting survey undertaken in Australia.Teenage girls are using their mobiles to send sexual images of themselves because they think it's fun and sexy, rather than because they feel pressured by boys, the new research from [...]
Think of two teenagers you have regular contact with: one who is resilient and happy, and one who is struggling and languishing. Imagine you are interviewing each of them, and you ask them to respond to each of these six questionnaire items: 1. I think I am doing pretty well 2. I can think of [...]
Helping the next generation live with feelings, not pathologise them. Young people in our society are increasingly worried and upset – not about any aspect of their life in particular - but about being worried and upset. This is a relatively new phenomenon. In the 1980s, surveys of teens showed they were worried about school, [...]
The physio digs her thumbs into the crook of my shoulder. "So when you're sitting on the computer at home on Twitter or Facebook, you can do these neck exercises." Like many adults, this physio has immediately made the presumption that because I'm a teenager, I obviously spend all of my time huddled in a [...]
Being bullied at school is an unpleasant and relatively common experience for many young people, but does it lead to long-lasting harm? A growing number of studies have found that being bullied is associated with an increased risk of developing symptoms of anxiety and depression, self-harm and even suicidal ideation. Many would argue that it [...]
Responding to rapidly shifting legal and cultural environments, researchers at the University of Montreal and CHU Sainte-Justine Children's Hospital have found a way to prevent, reduce or delay cannabis use amongst some at-risk youth. Cannabis users are at risk of neurocognitive deficits, reduced educational and occupational attainment, motor vehicle accidents, exacerbation of psychiatric symptoms, and [...]
Have you found yourself standing in front of a 12 or 13 year old wondering "Who on earth are you?" Whether we are the parent, the teacher, the coach.....whoever.......we are often left to scratch our head and consider where we went wrong. Almost overnight it seems this gorgeous 12 or 13 year old has transformed into a grumpy, [...]
