Protecting Teens in an Age of AI and Online Exploitation

The digital landscape our kids are navigating has become more dangerous than most of us realize, particularly now with AI and Fake Nudes.

Effective strategies to parent your “hard to parent” teen. Sharing hard-earned lessons.

Kindness doesn't just make the world slightly better for others. It measurably improves our physical and mental health, reduces our stress reactivity, provides our children with concrete evidence that they have power to create good in the world, creates a ripple effect that touches givers, receivers, and observers alike, and literally retrains our brains to notice positive interactions instead of only threats and problems.

The cultural climate and our own adverse experiences (like divorce or a loss of a job) has an impact on adults, but children, especially neurodivergent children, are particularly vulnerable to the anxiety and confusion it creates. Kids are incredibly sensitive to their environment, so to the best you can, be mindful of what they are exposed to, and have age-appropriate conversations with them to help them process and understand

If your teen seems to lack motivation, change the focus from "how can we make you change" to "what do you actually want for your life?"

Lasting motivation doesn't come from consequences or rewards. It comes from understanding what matters and choosing to act in alignment with those values, even when it's hard.

Seeing the forest through the trees: when your child or young adult may need a comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation.

Strategies for Communicating with your Teen or Young Adult Child Photo by: Photo by Volodymyr Hryshchenko on Unsplash

Photo by Sean Foster on Unsplash

When a family comes to me sharing the story of their child who is struggling, I also ask, "And, how is this impacting you, their parents, your marriage, and especially their siblings?"

As a clinical social worker trained in family systems, I look at the health of the entire family system. When one child struggles, requiring more of their parents' attention and emotional energy, the siblings will be impacted. It's not a matter of if – it's a matter of how.

If you've a child with special needs, you've likely been following the news about proposed changes to federal education oversight and funding. I won't lie - it's concerning. The potential downsizing of the Department of Education, shifting oversight responsibilities, and reduced federal enforcement could impact the services our kids depend on.

But here's what we want you to remember: your child still has rights, and you still have power as their advocate. The federal laws that protect students with disabilities - IDEA, Section 504, and the ADA - are still in place. What's changing is how they might be enforced and funded. We aim to keep you informed.

Fair Play is Rodsky's answer to the imbalance of work that often crops up in managing a house and family. The book offers tools, techniques, and resources that help couples learn how to share responsibility for household tasks and decision-making in a way that works for the whole family. For families struggling with school stress or a mental health crisis, this structure is invaluable.