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Home : Parents & Caregivers : Your emotions

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Helpful tools for your daughter

The teen years can be a tough time for both teens and their families. Your daughter is going through many changes and her emotions may change from one minute to the next. It can be hard to know if what your daughter is going through is normal or if it is a mental health problem. The resources in this section cover many of the mental health issues that teens face, including depression, suicide, cutting, and weight and body image issues. Your daughter can use the tools in this section to learn more about the different mental health issues, or to learn how to better express her feelings or deal with stress.

Featured Articles

  1. Federal resource Suggestions for Adults: Talking and Thinking with Children about the Terrorist Attacks

  2. About Teen Suicide
  3. Binge Eating Disorder
  4. Compulsive Exercise
  5. Fears and Phobias
  6. Does Your Child Have Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder?
  7. Helping Your Child Deal With Death
  8. My Child is Stealing
  9. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
  10. Understanding Depression
sad girl looking at a magazine

Web sites

  1. Federal resource A Family Guide To Keeping Youth Mentally Healthy & Drug Free - This web site from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration was developed to support parents and other caring adults who are working to promote mental health and prevent the use of alcohol, tobacco, and illegal drugs among 7- to 18-year-olds.
  2. Federal resource  girlshealth.gov: Mind - We have created the girlshealth.gov section on the mind to help adolescent girls learn more about some of the unique health issues and social situations they will encounter during the teen years. This section provides information, resources, and links to help your daughter learn more about mental health.
  3. Talk. You've Got to Start Somewhere. - This web site from the Boston Public Health Commission provides information about mental health for parents and teens. The site helps reduce the stigma associated with mental health issues by encouraging teens and parents to talk about the importance of emotional health. It also emphasizes the importance of understanding adolescent development and recognizing the signs of stress.

Publications

  1. Federal resource  An Activity Book for African American Families: Helping Children Cope with Crisis - This guide from the National Institute of Child Health & Human Development offers parents and caregivers information, resources, and tips for helping children through crises.

    http://www.nichd.nih.gov/publications/pubs/cope_with_crisis_book/index.cfm
  2. Federal resource  Child and Adolescent Mental Health - This fact sheet gives general information about child and adolescent mental health, including causes, warning signs, symptoms, and the various service settings and treatment models used to treat them.

    http://www.mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/publications/allpubs/CA-0004/default.asp
  3. Federal resource  GIRL POWER! Is Good Mental Health - This publication contains information about substance abuse and the mental health of young girls and how parents and other caregivers are responsible for nurturing a child's mental health.

    http://www.mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/publications/allpubs/CA-0038/default.asp
  4. Federal resource  Helping Your Children Navigate Their Teenage Years: A Guide for Parents - This on-line publication is a guide for parents providing information on how to talk to your teen, how to manage anger, how to handle tough situations, and where to go for help.

    http://www.mentalhealth.org/publications/allpubs/SVP-0013/default.asp
  5. Federal resource  Major Depression in Children and Adolescents - This fact sheet gives an overview of depression including signs, symptoms, prevalence, treatment, and practical tips on how parents can seek help for their children.

    http://www.mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/publications/allpubs/CA-0011/default.asp
  6. Federal resource  Adobe PDF  Talking to Children about Death (PDF – 224KB) - This publication gives advice to parents on how to talk about death with their children. It suggests conversation starters, how to deal with funerals, and ideas on how to bring up issues of religion and guilt.

    http://www.cc.nih.gov/ccc/patient_education/pepubs/childeath.pdf
  7. Children's Threats: When Are They Serious? (Copyright © AACAP) - This article discusses when threats should be taken seriously and how parents, teachers, and other adults can address the threat.

    http://aacap.org/page.ww%3Fname%3DChildrens%20Threats:%20When%20Are%20They%20Serious%3F%26section%3DFacts%2Bfor%2BFamilies
  8. Helping Children Understand Mental Illness (Copyright © MHASP) - This publication provides parents with suggestions on how to help their children understand mental illness and with expression of their feelings.

    http://www.mhasp.org/coping/guardians.html
  9. Helping Teenagers with Stress (Copyright © AACAP) - This publication contains guidance on how a teenager can better cope with stress.

    http://aacap.org/page.ww%3Fname%3DHelping%2BTeenagers%2Bwith%2BStress%26section%3DFacts%2Bfor%2BFamilies
  10. Parent/Teacher Resources: Time Management (Copyright © PBS Kids) - Learning how to manage time is one of the most valuable lessons a child or teen can learn. This web site provides links to various tools and articles that parents can use to teach their child about managing time efficiently.

    http://pbskids.org/itsmylife/parents/resources/time.html
  11. Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls (Copyright © APA) - The proliferation of sexualized images of girls and young women in advertising, merchandising, and media is harming girls' self-image and healthy development. This report explores the cognitive and emotional consequences, consequences for mental and physical health, and impact on development of a healthy sexual self-image.

    http://www.apa.org/pi/wpo/sexualization.html
  12. Supporting Young Women with Eating Disorders: A Guide for Family Members & Close Friends (Copyright © CYWH) - This guide is for family members or close friends of someone struggling with an eating disorder. It gives tips on how to talk to the patient and what to do to encourage recovery.

    http://youngwomenshealth.org/supportteens.html
  13. Teaching Your Daughters Self-Esteem (Copyright © Love Our Children USA) - Teach your daughters how to love their body and have high self-esteem. Tips are provided to parents on how to build confidence in their children.

    http://www.loveourchildrenusa.org/parent_teachgirlselfesteem.php
  14. Teen Suicide (Copyright © AACAP) - This online publication discusses issues about teen suicide and makes parents aware of teenage warning signs. Parents are encouraged to talk to their child about concerns and seek professional help if necessary.

    http://www.aacap.org/publications/factsfam/suicide.htm
  15. Ten Tips for Parents of a Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, or Transgender Child (Copyright © Advocates for Youth) - This publication offers tips to parents on how to be a part of your GLBT child’s life by engaging with your child, supporting your child at home and at school, and educating yourself about the issues that may come up regarding your child’s sexual orientation.

    http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/parents/experts/maurer2.htm
  16. The Depressed Child (Copyright © AACAP) - This on-line publication contains information on depression in children, signs of depression, and what to do if you think your child is depressed.

    http://www.aacap.org/publications/factsfam/depressd.htm
  17. What Every Child Needs for Good Mental Health (Copyright © NMHA) - This fact sheet from Mental Health America covers the basics of providing for your child’s emotional and mental health needs.

    http://www.nmha.org/go/information/get-info/children-s-mental-health/what-every-child-needs-for-good-mental-health

Organizations

  1. Federal resource  National Institute of Mental Health, NIH, HHS

    http://www.nimh.nih.gov
  2. American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

    http://www.aacap.org/
  3. American Psychiatric Association

    http://www.healthyminds.org/
  4. Mental Health America

    http://mentalhealthamerica.net/

 

Federal resource = This article, publication, web site, or organization is from the U.S. government.

Adobe PDF Document = You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader® to view some of these files after you've downloaded them. If you have problems with PDF documents, please download the latest version of the Reader®.

Content last updated November 11, 2007

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health.

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