Power Your Parenting: Moms With Teens

Why are so many bright, capable boys becoming unmotivated, disengaged from school, and more interested in the virtual world than real life?

In this eye-opening episode of Power Your Parenting: Moms with Teens, I talk with Dr. Leonard Sax about the newly released third edition of his bestselling book, Boys Adrift: The Six Factors Driving the Growing Epidemic of Unmotivated Boys and Underachieving Young Men. Dr. Sax explores why so many boys are struggling academically and losing motivation—and how changes in education may be contributing to the problem.

We also dive into the powerful pull of video games and why parents need to pay attention to both how much their sons are gaming and what they are playing. Dr. Sax discusses sleep, ADHD, and stimulant medications and encourages parents to ask informed questions. His message is clear: teens still need parents to provide boundaries, structure, and guidance, even when they push back.

Finally, we tackle some of the newest challenges facing boys: pornography, AI girlfriends and companions, and the online “manosphere.” Dr. Sax explains how these influences can pull boys away from real relationships and a meaningful life. He encourages parents to monitor technology, create firm limits, and connect boys with positive male role models. Most importantly, he reminds parents that these problems are not hopeless—there are concrete steps we can take to help our boys thrive.

3 Takeaways

Pay attention to the virtual world. Know what your son is doing online and make sure gaming, pornography, and AI aren't replacing sleep, school, friendships, and real-life experiences.

Have the courage to set limits. Your son may not like your boundaries, but he still needs you to provide structure and guidance that protects his future.

Help him see what a good man looks like. Boys need positive male role models who demonstrate character, responsibility, respect, purpose, and healthy relationships.

Learn More at: https://www.leonardsax.com/

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Do you spend a significant time worrying about all things, especially your kids. Anxiety is sneaky and gets inside your head. It convinces you that you are being a good mom if you worry and that you are a bad mom if you don't. It deceives you into thinking that worrying and obsessing is productive and will lead to problem solving.

The truth is anxiety is exhausting and is a huge reason we can feel all mothered out.

To talk about this I brought in a knowledgeable guest.

⁠Lynn Lyons, LICSW⁠ has been psychotherapist for 25 years and specializes in treating anxious children and their parents, with a special interest in interrupting the generational pattern of worry in families.

Lynn has a podcast called, ⁠Flusterclux⁠, where she helps parents understand how to manage anxiety. Katie Couric has also interviewed Lynn, and she has been featured in Psychology Today, The New York Times, NPR and Reader's Digest.

Her new book, ⁠The Anxiety Audit⁠ offers an eye-opening look at the 7 sneaky ways that anxiety and worry weave their way into our families, our friendships, and our jobs, and provides actionable steps to reverse the cycle and reclaim our emotional well-being.

⁠ https://www.instagram.com/lynnlyonsanxiety/ ⁠

⁠https://www.lynnlyons.com/
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What if the rewards you’re using to motivate your teen are actually making them less motivated?

In this episode of Power Your Parenting: Moms with Teens, I talk with Dr. Özgür Bolat, author of The Reward Trap: Why Rewards Backfire and the Real Science of Motivating Kids, about the surprising downside of using rewards to motivate our kids. Dr. Bolat is a distinguished education scientist, researcher, associate professor, and internationally recognized expert in education and parenting. He earned his master’s degree from Harvard Graduate School of Education and his PhD from the University of Cambridge and spent a year as a visiting PhD student at MIT Sloan. His research and personal experience led him to explore how achievement, praise, and rewards can create a dependence on external validation—and what parents can do differently.

Dr. Bolat explains that while rewards may get teens to do what we want in the short term, compliance is not the same as motivation. When we say, “Get an A and I’ll give you money,” or “Finish your homework and you can have more screen time,” teens may become focused on the payoff rather than learning, mastery, or personal responsibility. Over time, rewards can undermine intrinsic motivation and even affect creativity, self-esteem, and connection. Instead of immediately trying to control behavior, Dr. Bolat encourages parents to get curious about what’s underneath it. Why isn’t your teen studying? Why have they stopped caring about school? What are they struggling with? His PEACE model helps parents move away from simply fixing the behavior and toward understanding and solving the deeper problem together.

3 Takeaways for Moms

1. Compliance is not the same as motivation.Rewards may get your teen to do something today, but they don't necessarily build the internal motivation to keep doing it. Ask yourself: Am I trying to get immediate compliance, or am I helping my teen develop ownership?

2. Look underneath the behavior.Instead of asking, “How do I get my teen to study?” get curious: “Why is my teen struggling to study?” Resistance may be pointing to discouragement, disconnection, fear of failure, lack of meaning, or another deeper issue.

3. Help your teen find a cause, not just a goal.Grades and college acceptance may not be motivating enough. Talk with your teen about the bigger picture: What kind of life do you want? What are you good at? What matters to you? How do you want to contribute? Meaning, growth, values, and connection can become powerful internal motivators.

Follow on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/dr.ozgurbolat/

Learn more at: https://ozgurbolat.co.uk/
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What if your teen’s defiance, withdrawal, lying, or disrespect isn’t actually the problem—but a signal that something deeper is going on beneath the surface?

Geoffrey Owen is the founder of Biologically Aligned Parenting and author of The Parenting Assumption. Drawing on decades of observation, his background in theater, the influence of The Continuum Concept, and his own experience raising two daughters, Geoffrey helps parents move away from managing and controlling behavior and instead understand the deeper needs that may be driving it. His approach encourages parents to create an environment of greater calm, safety, connection, and trust so children can mature and thrive.

When your teen is rude, defiant, withdrawn, or dishonest, it’s natural to focus on stopping the behavior. But what if there’s another way to look at it?

In this episode of Power Your Parenting: Moms with Teens, I talk with Geoffrey Owen about his concept of Biologically Aligned Parenting. Geoffrey encourages parents to view difficult behavior not simply as something to correct, but as a signal that a child may be reacting to something in their environment or an unmet need for connection, safety, certainty, and trust.

We explore how easily moms can get caught in a cycle of monitoring, questioning, correcting, and trying harder—especially when we’re worried about our teens. Geoffrey suggests that sometimes doing less can actually create more connection. Instead of immediately reacting to the behavior, parents can become curious about what might be underneath it and pay attention to the emotional atmosphere they themselves are creating.

We also talk about how parental stress and anxiety can affect the entire household. When moms are constantly rushing, worrying, questioning, or trying to manage every detail, teens may experience that pressure even when our intentions are loving. One of the most powerful shifts we can make is to work on our own state—our anxiety, frustration, tone, and reactions—rather than putting all our energy into changing our teen.

Geoffrey also offers a provocative idea for moms who feel shut out by their teens: stop filling every space with questions and conversation. Give your teen room to initiate. Focus on your own life, interests, and well-being, and allow some space in the relationship. As we discuss from our own experiences with our daughters, sometimes when moms stop chasing the details, teens and young adults become more willing to share them.

This conversation offers moms permission to step away from exhausting over-management and consider a different question: Instead of asking, “How do I make my teen change?” ask, “What can I change in myself and in our environment that might make connection easier?”

3 Key Takeaways

1. Look beneath the behavior.
Instead of immediately labeling your teen as disrespectful, defiant, lazy, or difficult, get curious. Geoffrey suggests viewing behavior as a signal and asking what may be happening underneath it.

2. Your calm matters more than you think.
You may not be able to control your teen’s mood or choices, but you can pay attention to your own anxiety, frustration, tone, and reactions. A calmer parent can help create a calmer and more secure home environment.

3. Sometimes less parenting creates more connection.
Fewer questions, less monitoring, and less chasing can create the space teens need to come toward you. Listen more, manage less, invest in your own life, and give your teen opportunities to initiate connection.

Learn more at: https://geoffreyowen.com/
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What if your teen’s extreme behavior isn’t proof that you’re failing as a mom—but a sign that you simply need different tools?

When your teen is disrespectful, defiant, anxious, aggressive, using substances, or struggling emotionally, it’s easy to wonder, Where did I go wrong? In this episode of Power Your Parenting: Moms of Teens, I talk with Dr. Scott Sells, family therapist and author of the newly revised Parenting Your Out-of-Control Teenager: Eight Strategies to Reestablish Authority and Reclaim Love. Dr. Sells reminds parents that extreme behavior often isn’t a “bad parenting” problem—it’s a tools problem. Drawing from decades of working with families as well as his own experience parenting twin teenage sons, he explains why parents need a balance of love and limits—or connection with correction.

Dr. Sells explains why gentle parenting alone may fall short with teens who have extreme behavioral or emotional challenges. Teens need connection, but they also need clear guardrails. As he puts it, “rules without relationships lead to rebellion.” You’ll hear practical strategies for rebuilding connection, including catching your teen doing something right, creating intentional special outings, and staying committed to the relationship even when your teen initially pushes you away.

We also explore the complicated question many moms face: Is this anxiety, trauma, neurodivergence, a mental health issue—or simply oppositional behavior? Dr. Sells discusses looking at both skill and will, reducing over-accommodation of anxiety, and examining how smartphones, instant gratification, nutrition, and family patterns may contribute to emotional struggles.

Most importantly, this conversation offers hope. You don’t have to parent perfectly, and trying harder with the same strategies isn’t always the answer. Sometimes you need a new tool—one that helps you lower the drama, restore your authority, and rebuild the loving connection underneath all the conflict.

Scott Sells, PhD, is the founder and developer of the evidence-based treatment models Parenting with Love and Limits and Family Systems Trauma, used by therapists across the United States and Europe. He earned his PhD and MSW from Florida State University and has served as a professor of social work at Savannah State University and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He has delivered keynotes for major mental health organizations and authored more than 20 professional publications. Dr. Sells is the author of three books, including the newly revised Parenting Your Out-of-Control Teenager: Eight Strategies to Reestablish Authority and Reclaim Love, Treating the Traumatized Child, and Treating the Tough Adolescent.

3 Key Takeaways

1. It may not be a parenting problem—it may be a tools problem.
When the strategies you’ve always used stop working, trying harder isn’t necessarily the solution. You may need a different, more specialized tool.

2. Teens need both love AND limits.
Connection without boundaries can leave teens without needed guardrails, while rules without a relationship can fuel rebellion. The goal is balanced parenting: connection with correction.

3. Look beneath the behavior.
Disrespect, defiance, anxiety, or withdrawal may be the surface problem. Getting curious about what is driving the behavior—and then choosing the right tool—can help parents move from constant firefighting toward real change.

Learn more at https://familytrauma.com/dr-scott-sells/

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