Your Adolescent: Emotional, Behavioral, and Cognitive Development from Early Adolescence Through the Teen Years

What does a typical thirteen-year-old feel, think about, and wish for? Why do teens get moody? How can a parent help menstruation? When do you know if your child is old enough to date?
By describing the developmental milestones of adolescence, discussing specific questions and concerns, and examining troublesome problems, this invaluable resource will help parents understand and respond to the day-to-day challenges of the teen years. It covers a range of practical issues, from guiding your teen through the physical changes of puberty to negotiating school-related issues like popularity, peer pressure, and self-esteem, from handling your teen's experimentation with sex, alcohol, and drugs to helping them cope with the emotional turmoil that follows a divorce or the death of a loved one.
Your Adolescent also moves beyond the everyday concerns to those that represent more serious obstacles to a teen's development. The latter sections of the book provide extensive discussion of the developmental problems that usually require professional intervention, including serious emotional disorders such as depression, eating disorders, substance abuse, and disruptive behavior disorders. These sections will help you determine whether your teen could benefit from professional treatment and will guide you through the steps involved in seeking help.
A time of dramatic and perplexing change, the adolescent years can be the most challenging and rewarding for parents. The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, the leading national association of physicians dedicated to the healthy mental development of children and adolescents, has written the only resource you will need to guide you through the challenges of parenting a teenager. No other book offers such thorough information on:
- Understaning the developmental milestones and day-to-day concerns of the adolescent years
- Determining when you teen's behavior is normal and when it's a signal for professional help
- Getting help for your teen–including practical and reassuring advice on the many aspects of mental health treatment and the professions involved