Best Treatment Options For My Struggling Teen Podcasts (2025)

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161. Surviving Teen Addiction: One Family’s Path Through Wilderness and Recovery With Dawn McCord 42:32

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1d ago42:32

42:32

When your teen is caught in the cycle of substance abuse, it can feel like you’re living in a nightmare you can’t wake up from. You find yourself wondering: Is this just normal teenage behavior? Or is something much bigger going on? I remember asking myself those same questions when my own son was struggling. That’s why this conversation with Dawn …

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160. Why Psychological Testing for Teens Matters: Getting the Right Diagnosis With Liz Griffith 32:05

8d ago32:05

32:05

Misdiagnosis, trial-and-error medication, and treatment plans that miss the real issue are realities many families haave to face, even though the last thing you want is guesswork when it comes to your struggling teen’s or young adult’s care. That’s where psychological testing comes in. In this conversation with Liz Griffith, owner of Psychological …

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159. Helping Your Teen Build Independence and Resilience With Virginia Townsand 29:16

15d ago29:16

29:16

You want to protect your child and give them a better life than you had. But sometimes, those good intentions backfire, leaving our teens less capable, less confident, and more dependent than we ever wanted. In this conversation with licensed clinical counselor and life coach Virginia Townsand, we explore how over-helping can unintentionally create…

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158. Are You Helping or Enabling? How to Support Your Struggling Teen Or Young Adult Kid Without Rescuing 27:02

22d ago27:02

27:02

You step in to help, ease your kid’s struggles, but is your help actually helpful or is it keeping your struggling teen or young adult from making the changes they need most? You want the best for them, but how can you influence internal change? It’s a painful truth many parents don’t realize: sometimes “help” becomes enabling. By rescuing your str…

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157. Is This Normal Teen Behavior? A Parent’s Guide to Knowing the Difference, With Therapist Jen Murphy 37:32

29d ago37:32

37:32

Ever wondered if your teen’s latest mood swing, eye roll, or total shutdown is just part of growing up or a sign that something deeper is going on? You’re not alone. Parents ask me about normal teen behavior almost daily, especially when past struggles or treatment make it harder to tell what’s typical and what’s cause for concern. In this conversa…

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156. Understanding Why Teens Lie, With Therapist Dana VanRenterghem 30:46

1M ago30:46

30:46

When your teen lies to you, it can feel like a betrayal, whether it’s about doing the dishes, where they were last night, or something much bigger. But what if their dishonesty isn’t a sign of disrespect, but a sign of something deeper? Today, therapist Dana VanRenterghem is back to unpack the emotional complexity behind why teens lie. From little …

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155. The Pain of Watching Your Teen Resist Help: Understanding Resistance to Change 22:30

1M ago22:30

22:30

It’s one of the most heartbreaking parts of parenting a struggling kid: watching them resist the very help they need, even when they KNOW they need it. In today’s conversation, Seth and I talk about the resistance to change: what it looks like, why it shows up, and how powerless it can make you feel as a parent. Whether your teen is avoiding treatm…

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154. What Struggling Teens Wish Their Parents Knew: Advice From Former Troubled Teen Enzo 17:35

2M ago17:35

17:35

What if your struggling kid isn’t defiant, out of control, or ungrateful… but just hurting, lost, and desperate to be understood? In this follow-up conversation, Enzo returns. Last week, he shared his story. This time, he’s here to offer something every parent craves: honest, compassionate advice from someone who’s been there. Someone who ran from …

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153. Inside the Mind of a Troubled Teen: Enzo's Journey Through Substance Abuse, Running From Treatment, and Two Overdoses 55:16

2M ago55:16

55:16

What’s underneath the chaos when your teen or young adult is out of control? I may seem like they don’t care about anything: school, their future, you. But what if underneath, there’s a deep sense of fear, loneliness, and the desperate need to belong? As parents, we often only see the surface: defiance, shutdowns, risky behavior, silence. But there…

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152. Self-Care for Parents: Knowing Your Worth and Setting Boundaries 24:51

2M ago24:51

24:51

You’re probably sick of hearing about self-care, and you’ve surely heard a hundred times that “you have to take care of yourself.” But when parenting a struggling teen or young adult, choosing yourself doesn’t always come naturally. So what does it actually look like to take care of yourself it feels like your family is in constant crisis? In today…

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151. Advocate for Your Child at School: 10 Tips for a Successful IEP Meeting With Andrea Svendsen 44:43

2M ago44:43

44:43

There’s no handbook on how to advocate for your child at school, especially when things get hard. Navigating IEP meetings can feel overwhelming, intimidating, and downright confusing. You know your child needs support, but between the legal jargon, emotional stress, and resistance from schools, it’s hard to know how to show up as a strong advocate …

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150. Helping Your Teen Find Community & Belonging After Treatment With Hayley From ‘Not Therapy’ Coaching 50:52

3M ago50:52

50:52

Nobody really talks about what happens after treatment. The messy, vulnerable in-between where your teen or young adult is no longer in crisis but still doesn’t quite feel at home in the world. They’ve changed… and they can feel it. But instead of feeling proud, they often feel disconnected, misunderstood, or even rejected by their peers. They’ve g…

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149. Setting Healthy Boundaries With Your Teen Through Complaints and Pushback 24:40

3M ago24:40

24:40

“You’re so controlling!” Did your kid ever tell you that? If your teen or young adult constantly complains about your rules, expectations, or structure, saying that you’re controlling them, you're not alone. Many parents trying to set healthy boundaries with their teen end up questioning themselves the moment they face pushback. You want to listen,…

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148. Setting Boundaries With Grandparents and Extended Family + Where to Seek Support Instead 26:44

3M ago26:44

26:44

When you’re desperate for support, it’s tempting to turn to extended family. But sometimes their “help” just makes things harder. It’s a common and painful dynamic for many struggling parents: your teen is having a hard time, and suddenly the grandparents or extended family start weighing in with passive-aggressive comments, outdated advice, or jud…

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147. Not Every Struggling Teen Needs Wilderness: Talking Family Intensives with Mom Kathy & Therapist Jen Murphy 49:49

3M ago49:49

49:49

What if the solution isn’t sending your teen away? When your child is struggling and the emotional rollercoaster has taken over your home, wilderness therapy might seem like the only real option. But what if it’s not the right option for your family? Today, I’m joined by mom Kathy and therapist Jen Murphy to talk about a different kind of approach …

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146. When Your Teen Doesn’t Want Your Advice 26:48

4M ago26:48

26:48

You’re trying to help. They think you’re trying to control them. Sound familiar? As parents, we often step in with the best intentions: to protect, guide, or simply make things easier. But when your teen or young adult shuts down, gets defensive, or accuses you of being controlling, it can leave you feeling confused, hurt, and stuck. So, what do yo…

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145. How to Apologize to Your Teen or Young Adult Kid With Dana Vanrenterghem. 36:55

4M ago36:55

36:55

"I'm sorry" might be the hardest two words to say to your teen. But what if apologizing is actually the key to rebuilding trust and connection? In today’s episode, I sit down with therapist Dana VanRenterghem to unpack the real challenge of taking accountability with our teens and young adults. We dive into those messy moments when emotions run hig…

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144. Parenting Without Enabling: How to Support Without Condoning Harmful Behavior 21:56

4M ago21:56

21:56

When your kid makes harmful or self-destructive choices, it's natural to want to step in, correct, and fix. But at some point, empathy might feel like enabling. How do we listen with compassion without sending the message that their behavior is okay? In this episode, Seth and I unpack the fear that being supportive might mean condoning poor behavio…

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143. Motivating Behavior Change in Teens & Young Adults With Teen Mentor, Michael Corbett 43:57

4M ago43:57

43:57

When our kids struggle to make better choices, we often focus on offering consequences, creating a plan, and following through. It’s a natural instinct to try harder, create structure, and hold boundaries. But what often gets overlooked is the role that beliefs play in motivating behavior change, both our kids’ beliefs about themselves and our own …

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142. Feeling Used by Your Teen? How to Move Away from Transactional Parenting With Trevor Allen 45:12

5M ago45:12

45:12

“I do so much for them, and they don’t even notice”. Sounds like a familiar thought? Many parents of struggling teens or young adults feel used, taken for granted, or stuck in a dynamic where love feels more like a series of trades than a relationship. In this episode, I’m joined again by therapist Trevor Allen to unpack the tricky dynamic of trans…

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141. What Are Your Expecting? - Navigating Expectations Before, During, and After Treatment 33:43

5M ago33:43

33:43

It’s not your child’s job to live up to your expectations. That might sound harsh, but it’s one of the most important truths I’ve had to learn as a parent, especially during the transition home after treatment. If you’re anything like me, you might be thinking: ‘But I don’t even have that many expectations!’ I used to think that too… I wasn’t askin…

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140. Parenting a Teen vs a Young Adult: Nuanced Changes at Every Stage 29:02

5M ago29:02

29:02

There’s a distinct shift that happens when your teen becomes a young adult, and it’s not just about age. Whether your child is living at home, in college, or fresh out of treatment, the transition from parenting a teenager to parenting a young adult is one of the most nuanced and challenging shifts we make as parents. In this episode, Seth and I ta…

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139. How to Help Your Anxious Teen or Young Adult With Monica Crnogorac 46:18

5M ago46:18

46:18

If your teen seems anxious, unmotivated, or constantly overwhelmed, there's often more going on beneath the surface than meets the eye. Teen anxiety is more common and more complex than many parents realize. Life coach for teens Monica Crnogorac brings both personal and professional insight on how to help your anxious teen. Together, we explore how…

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138. Life After Treatment: How Your Kid Can Find the Peer Support They Need 36:03

5M ago36:03

36:03

One of the most overlooked challenges after treatment? The loss of community. Teens and young adults often return home (or head off to college) and suddenly find themselves without the peer support they had in treatment, even though that kind of support, being seen and understood by someone who’s been through it too, can be one of the most powerful…

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137. How to Care Without Losing Yourself When Your Teen Is in Crisis 19:14

6M ago19:14

19:14

When your teen or young adult is struggling, it’s easy for everything else to fall away, including you. It’s a pattern we both see often: parents abandoning their own needs in the name of care, staying on high alert for the next crisis, and losing themselves in the process. I remember the desperation I felt when my son was struggling. I poured ever…

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136. Finding Balance While Shifting Parenting Patterns 24:12

6M ago24:12

24:12

When you're doing the work to grow as a parent, it's common to overcorrect. You recognize a pattern (maybe you tend to be explosive in conflict) so you swing to the opposite end and become overly passive. It feels like progress, but suddenly you're stuck in a new extreme. In this episode, Seth and I explore what we call the "pendulum swing" of beha…

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135. Challenging the Stories We Tell Ourselves About Our Struggling Teens & Young Adults 35:25

6M ago35:25

35:25

We all have an inner dialogue. But it's too easy to take the stories we tell ourselves, about our kids, our parenting, and what’s going to happen next, to start feeling like facts. In this episode, Seth and I explore how our narratives can quietly shape our reactions, expectations, and ultimately our relationships with our teens and young adults. “…

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134. Helping Your (ADHD) Teen Manage Time & Build Executive Function Skills With Chrissy Nichols 39:09

6M ago39:09

39:09

If your teen or young adult constantly underestimates how long things take or insists they “have plenty of time” when they don’t, welcome to the club! This common struggle is called time dysmorphia, and it’s more than just procrastination or laziness. It actually has to do with executive functioning. In this episode, executive function coach Chriss…

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133. When to Step Back: The Power of Disengaging for Healthy Communication with Your Teen or Young-Adult 31:04

7M ago31:04

31:04

Do you ever find yourself stuck in a conversation that’s going in circles, desperately trying to find a resolution? It’s natural to want closure, but sometimes, the healthiest thing you can do is step back. In this episode, Seth and I explore how disengaging can actually strengthen healthy communication with your teen rather than shutting it down. …

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132. Why Isn’t Your Love Enough to Make Your Struggling Teen Choose Better? 27:03

7M ago27:03

27:03

It’s devastating to watch your teen struggle and feel like nothing you do is making a difference. You love them more than anything, yet your support, advice, and care don’t seem to make a difference. If you’ve ever thought, Why isn’t my love enough to help my struggling teen?, you’re not alone. In this episode, Seth and I unpack why struggling teen…

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131. Navigating Home Visits: How to Approach Your Teen’s Visit Home from Treatment 35:45

7M ago35:45

35:45

Home visits after treatment can be both exciting and nerve-wracking for everyone involved. It’s a time filled with hope, but with that hope often comes fear: fear of falling back into old patterns, fear of things going wrong, and fear of not knowing what to expect. In this episode, Seth and I unpack what makes home visits so important, why they can…

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130. From Sibling to Mentor: The Sibling’s Perspective & Building Community After Treatment With Ethan Gordon 29:37

7M ago29:37

29:37

When a child struggles, the entire family feels it. But the sibling’s experience is often overlooked. Today, we get to hear the sibling’s perspective as Ethan Gordon, a mentor for struggling kids, teens, and young adults, joins me to share his unique perspective as both a sibling and a social worker. Drawing from his personal loss of a brother to d…

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129. Shifting to Healthy Communication with Your Teen and Family 39:40

8M ago39:40

39:40

Healthy communication is the foundation of strong relationships. But when emotions run high, it’s easy to fall into unhelpful patterns. In this episode, trauma therapist Sarah Allen joins me to explore how communication styles shape family dynamics and what it takes to shift toward healthier, more assertive communication with your struggling teen. …

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128. Parenting an Overwhelmed Teen (And Dealing With Your Own Overwhelm as a Parent) 22:35

8M ago22:35

22:35

When life feels like too much, it’s easy to get caught in the spiral of overwhelm. And let’s face it, whether it’s your teen or yourself as a parent, overwhelm is something we all face from time to time. In this episode, we dive into how to support your teen through these challenging moments while also learning to manage your own as a parent. Overw…

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127. When Nothing Seems to Work for Your Struggling Teen 35:27

8M ago35:27

35:27

What do you do when you’ve tried everything? Your teen has been to wilderness programs, therapeutic boarding schools, partial hospitalization programs, and more—and yet, the struggles persist. The behaviors, the fears, the maladaptive patterns, they all return in some way or form when your teen comes back home. What now? In this episode, I’m joined…

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126. Will My Work as a Parent Ever Be Done? 25:19

8M ago25:19

25:19

Parenting often feels like one of the most rewarding yet unrelenting journeys. There’s no clocking out, even after major milestones are achieved. In this episode, Seth joins me to explore what it means to keep showing up as a parent, even when the work feels never-ending. I reflect on how my son has grown far beyond his time as “my wilderness kid.”…

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125. Strengthening Relationships Through Conflict 15:35

8M ago15:35

15:35

Sometimes the shame around my actions feels so heavy and I feel like I’ve failed as a parent. Sounds familiar? In this deeply personal episode, I open up about one of the most painful regrets I’ve had as a parent. A moment I carried shame around for years. It was a time when I was overwhelmed with emotions and lacked the tools I have now, leading t…

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124. How to influence better sleep and beat insomnia for yourself and your teen with Sleep Doctor Funke Brown 34:27

9M ago34:27

34:27

It’s no secret that sleep is crucial for teens, but getting them to prioritize it? That’s a whole different story! This week on the podcast, I’m joined by Dr. Funke Afolabi-Brown, a triple board-certified sleep physician and founder of Restful Sleep MD, to dive into the importance of sleep for our teens and how we, as parents, can support them in d…

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123. Recognizing Your Teen’s Progress With Ciara Fanlo 21:14

9M ago21:14

21:14

How do you know if your teen is truly making progress? As parents, we often cling to our own standards, like better grades or sticking to curfews. These are the markers we cling to as evidence that the therapy or treatment is “working.” But what if the signs you’re looking for aren’t the ones that matter most? Because, our teens? They’re navigating…

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122. Your Kid Shouldn’t Take Your Advice: Here’s Why - With Ciara Fanlo 30:44

9M ago30:44

30:44

It’s SO frustrating when your kid doesn’t take your advice, isn’t it?! As parents, we have more life experience and we can share our advice with our kids to give them an easier and smoother life experience, at least that’s how it feels to us, right? That’s not how it works though. Together with Ciara Fanlo (a former “troubled teen” turned mentor fo…

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121. Unshaming My Anxiety: A Personal Story 17:49

9M ago17:49

17:49

I’ve been feeling a lot of anxiety lately. Our wilderness kid is doing really well, so you’d think, after all the heartache, pain, and anxiety of that journey, things would finally feel calm. But life has a way of throwing curveballs, doesn’t it? But honestly, I’ve been judging my anxiety hard. What’s your problem? Why can’t you handle this? You us…

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120. Releasing Control and Desired Outcomes for Our Teens With Maggie, Mom of a Wilderness Kid 48:28

10M ago48:28

48:28

It’s natural to want to steer our kids toward success and protect them from struggle. But what if trying to control the outcome does more harm than good? In this episode, I speak with Maggie, a mom of four (including one “wilderness kid”), who shares her deeply personal journey of learning to step back, trust her child’s path, and focus on her own …

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119. Why Messing Up After Treatment Can Be a Teen's Greatest Teacher with Former Struggling Teen Michael Wangsgard 47:48

10M ago47:48

47:48

What happens after your teen completes treatment? It’s a question many parents grapple with. In today’s episode, Beth talks to Michael, a former struggling teen who went to wilderness himself, about his journey through treatment and the challenges of returning home. Michael reflects on his time in wilderness treatment as the ‘worst best time’ of hi…

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118. What Success Looks Like for Young Adults With Joanna Lilley 35:09

10M ago35:09

35:09

It’s natural to feel uneasy when your kid strays from the socially accepted path of college, career, and other traditional milestones. But as today’s guest Joanna points out, the reality is that the so-called "normal" path is often the exception, not the rule. The world has changed dramatically, and success now comes in many forms. Degrees, certifi…

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117. Pointing Positive: Influencing Your Teen Toward Positive Change 23:41

10M ago23:41

23:41

Are you unknowingly sending your teen the message that their best isn’t good enough? In this episode, we dig into a concept called "pointing positive," a term from river kayaking that can make a big difference in parenting teens through tough times. When we guide our kids toward what they want to achieve, instead of focusing on what they need to fi…

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116. Understanding Trauma Responses in Parents & Struggling Teens, With Trauma Therapist Sarah Allen 45:16

11M ago45:16

45:16

Ever found yourself reacting strongly to something, even when it seems like “no big deal”? Or maybe, in a tense moment, you freeze or shut down instead of reacting? If you’re a parent of a struggling teen, be it addiction, mental health struggles, suicidal ideation or a different struggle, you’ve probably felt your own heart skip a beat more times …

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115. Understanding and Overcoming Fear in Family Dynamics 25:38

11M ago25:38

25:38

Fear has a sneaky way of impacting our brains, pushing us toward avoiding what feels uncomfortable instead of working through it. For many of us, fear makes us want to avoid the situation, but doing that keeps us from working through what needs to be done. It’s important to understand that fear is an emotion that comes and goes, just like other emo…

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114. Self-Care for Parents 101 22:23

11M ago22:23

22:23

It’s easy to forget to prioritize ourselves as parents, especially when our children are struggling. In this episode, Seth and I dive into the emotional balancing act of parenting a teen in treatment while still finding time for self-care. It’s common to feel guilty for taking care of yourself, especially when your child is away in treatment. Wheth…

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113. When Your Teen Says All the Right Things but Their Actions Say Otherwise 14:47

11M ago14:47

14:47

Your teen appears calm and composed with their therapist but displays anger or aggression at home, how frustrating!? It feels like you're dealing with two completely different versions of the same person. In this episode, Seth and I explore the challenge of handling teens who have been through enough therapy to know exactly what to say to 'work the…

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112. Rules vs. Boundaries vs. Expectations When Parenting A Struggling Teen With Trevor Allen 41:50

12M ago41:50

41:50

Balancing the need for rules with the desire for connection can be incredibly challenging when parenting teens. In this episode, therapist Trevor Allen and I dive into the complex dynamics of rules versus boundaries versus expectations and how to navigate them in a way that promotes healthy relationships. We discuss the confusion that can arise whe…