How do I talk to my elementary grade children about a young boy in our community – grade-school age himself – who recently took his own life? I have a hard time understanding how a child that age has the maturity level to contemplate suicide. I’m not sure how to explain this to my own …
Parenting
How can we comfort and support a young girl who has just been through the trauma of rape? We just learned that one of our children was recently the victim of a sexual assault. We are absolutely devastated. How can we help our daughter heal from this traumatic experience? What first steps should we take …
How should parents approach an adolescent who is involved in sexual self-gratification? Without going into details, I can tell you that I have good reason to suppose that my teenager has been masturbating. Needless to say, this is extremely upsetting to me. I’m worried about my child’s spiritual condition, and I have no idea what …
Should we allow our unmarried adult daughter to share a room with her boyfriend in our house? She lives out of town, and she plans to bring this man home with her for Christmas. To our disappointment, they have been sexually active for some time, and I know they’ll expect to sleep in the same …
How can I encourage my teens to combine cell phone use with a proper respect for others? In the beginning I was happy to provide my son and daughter with their own phones because I wanted to make sure that we could stay in touch at all times. More recently, however, I’ve become increasingly frustrated …
As parents of a 2- to 3-year-old, how do we begin placing healthy limits on our child’s exposure to television, video games, and the Internet? We’ve heard a lot about the negative impact of electronic media on adolescents and pre-teens, and we want to start encouraging good habits in this area as early as we …
Can you offer any guidance to parents whose child has recently become a member of a cult? Our family has been completely blindsided by this. We have no clue what our options are or what we ought to do, practically, legally, and otherwise. We really need your help!
How can we implement a more consistent bedtime schedule for our children, ages 8, 6, and 4? We haven’t been very successful in this area. How many hours do kids this age need to sleep? Do you have any tips for ways to improve bedtime and make it more pleasant?
How do I handle a kid whose behavior ranges from telling me to “shut up” to slamming a door on her younger sister to trying to steal money from my wallet? My daughter is the classic “defiant child.” She hates school, has trouble getting along with friends, and frequently disobeys her teacher. I’m worried about …
Is there any hope for the parent of a defiant, strong-willed child? I go through life feeling frazzled, dazed, and tired to the bone. Every day – almost every hour! – brings another confrontation, and sometimes I feel as if I don’t have the strength to go on. Any suggestions?
Should money play a role in our decision on where to send our kids to school? We don’t feel that the public schools are an option for our children’s education, so we’re left with a choice between home schooling and a private Christian school. Can you help us find our way?
Do you think that couples having trouble conceiving should see an infertility specialist? We’ve tried to get pregnant for over a year, so my spouse and I wonder if it would be worth seeing a doctor.
What should I do if my elementary school child is getting so much homework that family time hardly exists and he has little energy for anything else? He spends hours on his assignments every night. As far as I can see, he isn’t slow at completing his tasks. There’s just too much to do! Is …
What is your opinion about overnight group activities for elementary grade children? We want our kids to have fun and participate with their friends, but we’re concerned about exposing them to inappropriate influences. Are we overreacting?
How do we keep our child from becoming a “quitter”? Several months ago our 5-year-old son asked to be enrolled in a Tae Kwon Do program. He’s enjoyed it and usually has a good time once he gets to class. But lately we’ve run into problems with him not wanting to go. We don’t want …
With everything it takes to work at the office and run a household, how can I find quality time to spend with my children? It seems like there aren’t enough hours in the day to do everything that needs to be done. Do you have any suggestions?
How can we help our two-year-old get used to the idea of having a new baby sister? He whines and cries for Mommy all the time, and lately he’s been misbehaving as a way of getting our attention. How can we help him feel loved and secure?
How can I keep my 2-year-old daughter from “beating up” on her 10-month-old brother? She kicks him, punches him, bites him, screams at him, and whacks him with toys. It all began when he started crawling. This kind of thing goes on every day, several times a day. We’ve done everything we can think of …
Should we force our teen to relocate to a new state with the rest of us? A job change is requiring our family to move, but our adolescent son, who is currently a student in high school, doesn’t want to go with us. He’d rather move in with some friends and graduate from the school …
How should I handle my daughter’s aversion to seeing my ex-husband? The court has granted him visitation rights, but she’s very angry with him for leaving the family and doesn’t want anything to do with him. She needs to know that I understand her feelings. At the same time, I don’t want to keep her …