Includes bibliographical references and index.

An urgently needed guide to help parents understand their teenagers' emotional highs and lows--and how to support their sons and daughters through this critical development stage--from the New York Times bestselling author of Untangled and Under Pressure. In teenagers, powerful emotions are the rule, not the exception. Unfortunately, many of today's parents now regard their teens' negative feelings as disruptive, dangerous, or diagnosable, thanks to the rise of the wellness industry and the widespread use of psychotropic drugs. To make matters worse, the global pandemic, academic pressure, social media stress, and a bleak environmental future have left today's teenagers feeling overwhelmed. Parents who read this book will learn: a teenager's mental health isn't just about "feeling good," it's about having the appropriate feelings at the appropriate time; parents can help their teens regulate those feelings to avoid emotional floods; strategies to keep teens from being overwhelmed by their emotions, so that kids aren't at the mercy of their moods; how to connect with their teens to facilitate open, honest conversations; how to deal with their teens' arguments, risk taking, romance, friendships, social media, and much more. With concrete, relatable explanations embedded in vibrant, real-life anecdotes, The Emotional Lives of Teenagers gives parents the science-based information they need to guide their teens through a challenging developmental phase during challenging times.