Welcome back to a brand new season of Your Parent Coach! 🎉 In this quick mini-episode, I’m diving into practical strategies you and your teen can use to stay calm, connected, and in control during heated moments.

You’ll learn:

• Why creating a pause or stop-gap is the secret to moving from reaction to response.
• How to use the Colour Method to signal “I need space” in your home.
• A grounding trick called the 10 Toe Method you (and your teen) can use anywhere.
• Ways to reframe thoughts and feelings so both sides feel heard and respected.
• The 3 words every parent needs to remember.

Whether you’re navigating teen pushback or just wanting smoother communication at home, these tools will help you build trust, reduce conflict, and bring more calm into your parenting journey.

✨ If you found this episode helpful, share it with another parent and follow me on Instagram @melwhiteparentcoach and @yourparentcoachpodcast.

*Apologies for the audio mic popping at the beginning*

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Anxiety in teens is more common than many parents realise, and it doesn’t always look like worry. Sometimes it shows up as irritability, defiance, or withdrawal. In this episode of Your Parent Coach, I sit down with Sophia Vale Galano, a licensed clinical social worker and author of the upcoming book Calming Teenage Anxiety: A Parent's Guide to Helping Your Teenager Cope with Worry (releasing September 30, 2025).

Sophia shares compassionate, practical strategies for parents who want to better understand and support their anxious teens.

We explore:

✨ The subtle signs of teen anxiety parents often miss

✨ Why “just relax” isn’t helpful—and what to say instead

✨ How academic, social, and daily pressures are impacting teens today

✨ Simple ways to create a calmer home environment

✨ When it’s time to seek professional help—and how to approach the conversation

Whether your teen is navigating school stress, social challenges, or just the overwhelm of daily life, this conversation will give you tools and confidence to support them with empathy.

Links:

Pre-order Sophia’s book Calming Teenage Anxiety (available September 30, 2025).

Follow Sophia on Instagram

Visit her website https://sophiagalano.com/

Follow Mel on Instagram: @melwhiteparentcoach

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Despite more counsellors, resources, and “expert” advice than ever before, rates of anxiety, depression, self-harm, and suicide in teens keep climbing. So… what’s going wrong? And what actually helps?

In this episode, I’m joined by Will Dobud — therapist, researcher, parent, and co-author of the upcoming book Kids These Days: Understanding and Supporting Youth Mental Health — to explore why our current approaches to teen mental health are missing the mark, and how we can shift from “fixing” to truly supporting our young people.

We dive into:

• Why well-meaning adult interventions often backfire
• The four pillars that build resilience: connection, mastery, gratitude, and independence
• How to see your teen as the hero of their own story, not a problem to solve
• Practical ways to reconnect with a teen who’s shutting you out

Whether you’re a parent, educator, or just someone who cares about the next generation, this conversation will challenge your assumptions and leave you with hope and tools you can use today.

Links & Resources:

• Kids These Days — coming September 30, 2025 from New Society Publishers
• Learn more about Will Dobud & the book: https://www.bookpublicityservices.com/blog/kids-these-days-will-dobud-nevin-harper
• Connect with Will on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kids_these_days_book
• Get The Book Pre-order - https://www.amazon.com/Kids-These-Days-Understanding-Supporting/dp/1774060221

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