Do You Have A Self-Injury (Cutting) Problem?

Self-injury is a behavior people rely on to relieve or distract themselves from difficult feelings, or to communicate emotions that they seem unable to speak. Once people learn to express themselves in other ways – verbally, or in writing – the impulse to harm the self subsides. The unpleasant feelings may not go away, but the coping mechanism becomes a healthy one.

The first step is to acknowledge that you have a problem, and that you are not alone. Self-injury is a choice and you can choose to not injure yourself. I am not saying it will be easy - in fact, people say it is harder to stop than cigarette smoking. The important thing is that you can do it, with help! It will take work, but you can live without self-injury.

To help you decide if you have a problem, ask yourself these questions:

1. Do you cut or burn your skin habitually?
2. Do you feel compulsively drawn to cut, pierce, or burn your skin?
3. Do you get “high” from the way the activity feels physically?
4. Does the behavior consume your thoughts or interfere with your ability to function normally?
5. Realistically, could you stop the behavior today if you wanted to?
6. Do you use cutting, burning, piercing, compulsively exercising, or any other self-injurious behavior as your primary method of releasing internal tension or distress?
7. Is your self-injuring behavior “ritualized,” meaning it must be done in a certain way, and more frequently?
8. If you do not self-injure do you panic, get disorganized, or distressed?

“Yes” answers to any or all of these questions suggest that you should get help, and the earlier the better. Please call S.A.F.E. Alternatives at the number on the right (1-800-Don’t Cut) or visit their web site (http://www.selfinjury.com). They have a great book you can order called “Bodily Harm: The Breakthrough Healing Program for Self-Injurers,” as well.

Please take the first step and reach out for help!

Photo Credit: violater3

Labels: Healthline, Mental Health, Self-Injury

Permalink | 6 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

Are Teens Really Engaging In More Oral Sex?

There seems to be a belief that teens are participating in more oral sex than ever before, possibly to avoid emotional involvement, vaginal sex and pregnancy risk, partially because some teens do not think of oral sex as "real" sex, therefore do not consider themselves sexually active if they are only participating in oral sex.

A recent study by Duberstein Lindberg and Santelli, "Non-coital sexual activities among adolescents," suggests it might be true. These authors used the 2002 National Study of Family Growth data from 2,271 teens aged 15 to 19 to report that oral sex was much more common than vaginal sex, but both seemed to occur for the first time within six months.

Their results suggest that slightly more than half of the teens had engaged in oral sex, and in fact, more had participated in oral sex than vaginal sex, but their evidence suggests that female teens who are having oral sex, have only done so with one partner.

These results suggest it is very important that teens be provided education and risk counseling about the sexually transmitted infection risks associated with both vaginal and oral sex. By ignoring oral sex in sexuality education, we are allowing teens to believe they are "safe" if they are only having oral sex.

Photo credit: squeakymarmot

Labels: Healthline, Sexuality, Teen Health

Permalink | 0 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

I Won't Grow Up! Part 2

I promised follow-up, and here it is, although not very dramatic. The weekend arrived, and of course, the list remained undone, but my resolute teen started on the list, and stayed focused for about four hours. She then took a break and enjoyed walking to have dinner out with the family, and then she came home and set back to work, finishing the largest of the tasks before (a late) bedtime.

Saturday morning came and she asked if she could read and have coffee with everyone else versus starting right away, which her younger sister told her was a brilliant move! After breakfast the girls were focused and had their room clean and all the other tasks done by 2 PM.

So the fun began and we still have two days of beautiful weather, plenty of time, and new movies in the theaters. The only nasty task is mega homework, which she can work on for several hours each day, without my supervision. I have to say that this experiment was painless and I think what I learned is that patience is better than anger with my older teen, and being clear with expectations, and consequences, in addition to providing a timeline lets her take control.

My teen is very conscious of her responsibilities, but not above ignoring them if she thinks she can. I guess that makes her normal!

Photo credit: hoyasmeg

Labels: Healthline, Parenting, Teen Development

Permalink | 0 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

Sexual Risk Reduction Information to Parents

Statistics from the 2005 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, a representative survey of high school youth, indicated that 47% of adolescents in grades 9 through 12 engaged in sexual intercourse, and 6.2% did so before the age of 13.

The good news is that 53% had not had sex, which is good news for all parents. Given the high rates of sexually transmitted infections and pregnancies among sexually active teens, knowing that the majority of teens are choosing not to be sexual is comforting to those of us who worry about teens and should be passed on to teens, to normalize their choice not to be sexually active.

I think parents are an underutilized source of prevention education. The literature suggests that teens who talk to their parents about sex are less likely to engage in sex and more likely to use protection if they do. The literature also supports the fact that teens want to hear from parents and the fact that parents are the best educators of their teens, because they can pass on family values, in addition to information, whereas doctors and teachers focus on facts.

Since pediatricians and parents are both important components of sexual risk prevention efforts for adolescents, it would be great if pediatricians promoted parent-child communication during annual visits. Maybe at the same time the doctors suggest parents leave the exam room for a few minutes, and they explain state laws about confidential reproductive health care, they could suggest parents talk to kids about risk behaviors.

There are many resources to help, and here are a few:

Web Sites
Palo Alto Medical Foundation provides health information for parents and children.

• Parent Resources -- for parents of children of all ages.
• We're Talking -- Teen Health Info. -- for children, ages 13 to 18 and their parents. The purpose is to help youth find medically accurate information about health, and to stimulate important conversations between parents and children.
• We’re Talking, Too: Preteen Health Talk -- for children, ages 9 to 12 and their parents. The purpose is to help students learn about such topics as growing up, friendship, hygiene, empathy, divorce, stress, fitness, bullying and body changes, and to stimulate important conversations between parents and children.

Talking with Kids About Tough Issues is a national campaign by Children Now and the Kaiser Family Foundation. You can find tips, resources, and facts about sex, HIV & AIDS, violence and drugs.

The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy seeks to improve the well-being of children, youth, and families by reducing teen pregnancy. The Campaign's goal is to reduce the teen pregnancy rate by one-third between 1996 and 2005.

Planned Parenthood is the world's largest and oldest voluntary family planning organization. Planned Parenthood is dedicated to the principles that every individual has a fundamental right to decide when or whether to have a child, and that every child should be wanted and loved.

Photo credit: dev null

Labels: Healthline, Parenting, Sexuality Education, Teen Health

Permalink | 0 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

Thank You - Grand Rounds 4.35

Thank you #1 Dinosaur at Musings of a Dinosaur for hosting Grand Rounds 4.35 this week and including my post about a new nutritional resource to help teens, or anyone, deciding to eat fast food restaurants.

This week was very interesting and a great way to start my morning!

Photo Credit: edbierman

Labels: Grand Rounds, Healthline, Nutrition

Permalink | 0 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

I Won't Grow Up!

What does it look and sound like when a very responsible 16-year old apparently decides that growing up isn't all it's cracked up to be and refuses to practice the independence you have tried to give her - for several weeks?

I think it looks like this:

• I forgot my article for the school paper was due today;
• I forgot to take the sheets of my bed so they could be washed;
• I would rather not drive myself to work, will you please drive me;
• I can't walk the dog, there is not enough time;
• I was too busy to study for the test;
• Could you change that medical appointment for me, I have to work that day;
  
• I have not had time to complete that ...

but,

• I need you to make an appointment for my haircut;
• I would like to go see that new movie;
• I would like my clothes clean for work tomorrow;
• I need to be early for work;
  
• I should be able to stay up until 10 PM now;
• I would like to spend time with my friends; and
• I would like to read that new book by Meyer.

Confused as any parent would be, let's take this problem apart. It would seem that the teen above is only able to find time to do the things she likes and is only "forgetting" the things she does not want to do, and given this is a bright, articulate young woman, without any health problems, selective amnesia is my only conclusion.

Now, given this teen asks for little direct nurturing and care taking these days, it might be easy to do these things for her, cut her some lack and forgive the amnesia, which I have done for several weeks, but her luck has run out. In this house, we believe that completing our responsibilities makes us feel loved and strong, so there must be a way to help her back into the groove.

What shall I do with this selectively forgetful teen who seems to want to be a young child if it means having things done for her, but an independent teen when it comes to the privileges that age has to give her. I thought about this dilemma all weekend and came to the following conclusion. Let me know what you think of this natural consequence, and I promise to let you know how it goes.

Next weekend being a long weekend, there will be plenty of time to complete all of the things she has been forgetting, and to help her do that, the "fun"parts of the weekend - seeing a new movie, a fondue party, and a trip to the beach - will not happen until she has taken care of everything that has been sliding in the last month.

To prepare her, I have created a list of what those things are, and last night we discussed the list, and she knows when the fun stuff is planned during the weekend. She now has the option of doing all the backed up projects during the week, or leaving them for the weekend potentially missing the family fun during the weekend. I admit a little surprise at her response to my proposal - she said "seems fair," and the evening went on ...

Photo credit: hoyasmeg

Labels: Healthline, Parenting, Teen Development

Permalink | 1 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

Free Fast-Food Nutritional Details

Oh, I wish I would quit learning about nutrition. The more I learn, the less I can eat out!

If you want to know about the nutritional information of more than 400 chain and fast-food restaurant choices and healthier alternatives at that restaurant - there is a new free website called "Wellternatives," that you should check out. You can also use your phone to get there - by sending a text message to 878787 with the word "diet" followed by the name of a chain restaurant and a menu item.

This new site launched recently by Wellsphere.com is totally easy to use and really interesting. This web site seems to have been created in reaction to the fact that consumers want nutritional information that will support making healthy choices and attempts to get laws enacted that require restaurants to provide it - keep getting stalled or vetoed by our elected officials.

To test the site, I compared hamburgers at Jack-in-the-Box, McDonalds, and Wendys, with the following results:

Burgers
Jumbo Jack 598 (Calories) 51.3 (Carbs/gm) 34.6 (Fat/gm) 2.5 (Fiber/gm)
Big Mac 539 (Calories) 45.0 (Carbs/gm) 29.0 (Fat/gm) 3.0 (Fiber/gm)
Baconater 839 (Calories) 38.0 (Carbs/gm) 51.0 (Fat/gm) 1.0 (Fiber/gm)
Ultimate Cheeseburger 1011 (Calories) 52.7 (Carbs/gm) 71.4 (Fat/gm) 2.1 (Fiber/gm)

Alternatives Suggested
Hamburger Deluxe (with cheese) 462 (Calories) 33.1 (Carbs/gm) 27.8 (Fat/gm) 1.6 (Fiber/gm)
Double Cheeseburger 439 (Calories) 34.0 (Carbs/gm) 23.0 (Fat/gm) 2.0 (Fiber/gm)
Jr. Cheeseburger 319 (Calories) 34.0 (Carbs/gm) 13.0 (Fat/gm) 1.0 (Fiber/gm)
Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger 428 (Calories) 30.5 (Carbs/gm) 25.4 (Fat/gm) 1.1 (Fiber/gm)

Not only is the nutritional information available at this site, but you can use something called wellphone to get all sorts of support to reach your health goals. I hope you enjoy using this amazing new resource.

Photo credit: ebrull

Labels: Healthline, Nutrition

Permalink | 1 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

Great Parent Resource

The Palo Alto Medical Foundation (PAMF) offers a wonderful online resource for parents of children of all ages. The physicians and staff members of the PAMF know there are many questions and concerns that come with raising a child.

Whether a parent is looking for answers about a newborn's development, seeking advice on talking to a preteen about difficult topics or watching a teen struggle with making the right decision, PAMF is a great place to look.

Labels: Healthline, Parenting, Preteens, Teen Health

Permalink | 1 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

Thank You - Grand Rounds 4.34

Thank you David E. Williams at the Health Business Blog for hosting Grand Rounds 4.34 this week and including my post about the Care and Feeding of Adolescents.

This week had some very interesting posts included and I loved all the humor!

Photo credit: edbierman

Labels: Grand Rounds, Healthline, Nutrition

Permalink | 0 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day everyone! I hope that you managed to mother yourself, your children, your own mother, your partner, your pets, your house, your work, the earth, and the people you came into contact with today.

What a wonderful opportunity Mother's Day is to appreciate all of the unconditional love and attention that we enjoy every day and all of the blessings of love and attention we are able to bestow on others. Today is a chance to be thankful for all of the opportunities we have to teach, love, nurture, care for, and sustain the people in our lives!

I hope you find joy and love today!

Photo credit: nochoice

Labels: Financial Education, Healthline, Holidays, Parenting, School

Permalink | 0 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

The Care and Feeding of Adolescents

Given that food is a basic need and we all know that the obesity rate among children has tripled in the last 40 years, and that more and more people are living with Type 2 Diabetes, you would think that there would be lots of support for eating a healthy, well-balanced diet and exercising daily. Riiiight!

That would be in the perfect world, where preteens and teens did not care what their peers think, manufacturers did not advertise food that will make us fat and sick with skinny, beautiful people, school lunch programs did not (usually) suck, and where our children did not spend more time in front of "screens," being bombarded with advertising each year, than they spend in school!

Sadly enough, the best time to instill healthy eating habits is with their first solid food, but if you have gotten past 13 years old and have a teen you are encouraging to eat better, here are some tips:

• Be a role model - exercise daily and eat well;
• Set screen time limits;
• Do outside activities together;
• Cut the portions you usually serve down;
  
• Do not keep the unhealthy, sugary, easy foods in the house;
• Make the healthy foods easy - keep fruit cut up in the fridge with a tasty yogurt, and granola on the counter;
• Pack snacks they can take to school, practice, work, and other outside the home activities;
• Try new recipes until you find the ones they like;
• Go to local farmer's markets and cook meals together using the ingredients; and
  
• Make food something that the family enjoys preparing and sharing.
  

One great resource for helping preteens eat right and understanding the marketing that goes into what we eat is Shaping Youth. I heard the Founder, Amy Jussel, speak last week and couldn't wait to send parents, teachers, and teens to her Blog. This is a new organization so I think the web site will continue to grow.

Good luck and keep up the fight!

Photo credit: mOOrango

Labels: Body Image, Healthline, Preteens, Teen Health

Permalink | 0 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

Thank You - Grand Rounds 4.33

Thanks to Dr. Bates at Suture for a Living for hosting Grand Rounds 4.33 this week and including my post from Teen Health 411 about the danger of cosmetics.

This week was really interesting and the photos from Arkansas were beautiful!

Photo credit: web_guy94301

Labels: Grand Rounds, Healthline, Teen Health

Permalink | 0 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

Social Norms and Teen Drinking

Oh my, teachers are having DUI courts in middle school these days, suggesting that teen drinking and driving is a frequent enough occurrence to warrant early prevention, but the data says otherwise.

I believe it is our own bad habits and the media that are driving our perception that teens are drinking and driving more frequently. In fact, in 2006 there were 63% fewer teen DUI-related deaths than there were in 1982! Teens are getting it - drinking and driving do not mix! In fact, they are getting many of the anti-drug messages and rates of marijuana use are declining, as are rates for alcohol and other drug use. You can check out the Monitoring the Future Report for more information, and the California-specific press release at safestate.org.

If we continue to portray drug and alcohol use as "normal," we are doing serious damage to all teens - we are not acknowledging those making healthy decisions and we are ignoring those who may be developing addictions. The social norms campaigns being waged by PTAs across the country are trying to do just that and are worth taking some time to explore.

Photo credit: Mike "Dakinewavamon" Kline

Labels: Alcohol, Healthline, Substance Abuse, Teen Health

Permalink | 1 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

For Goodness Sake - Cosmetics Can Kill You

Why must everything be a struggle? I think I am doing my teenage girls a favor by buying what I consider to be high-end facial cleansers, moisturizers and make-up, in hopes that their chance of getting cancer will be reduced through the use of "organic, natural" products. Silly me - just because it says it is organic does not mean it really is - for goodness sake - what was I thinking?

A friend sent me to a web site called safecosmetics.org which completely undermined my sense of trust in the company making our "natural" cosmetics. The first story I read was about Herbal Essence, of course a favorite in our house with their bright packaging and great names like "drama clean" and "none of your frizziness," as well as catchy ads about "organic experiences." Little would you know that the maker of herbal essence products, none other than Proctor & Gamble, puts chemicals linked to cancer and reproductive problems and fragrance in their products.

Then I read a 2007 report from their News Room about the amount of lead in lipstick, which was just as disturbing. I learned that Maybelline, Cover Girl, Dior, L'Oreal all produce lipsticks with higher than acceptable lead levels.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics recommends avoiding products with "fragrance" on the label and using things only scented with essential oils because companies are not required to list any of the chemicals used in a fragrance mixture on the product label - who would have known?

If you want to know how safe your personal care products are, you can go to Skin Deep, the cosmetics safety database and have your confidence destroyed, too! There is also an interesting-looking book called "Not Just a Pretty Face" The Ugly Side of the Beauty Industry," which I may just have to review.

There was some good news - Whole Foods Market just introduced a "Premium Body Care" seal that will appear on products that are free of synthetic fragrance or any of 250 chemicals on a “unacceptable list” that do not meet a high standard for efficacy, safety and environmental impact. Oh my, never a dull moment!

Photo credit: eperales

Labels: Beauty, Health Fact, Healthline

Permalink | 2 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment

Teenage Birth Rate Increased in 2006

Well now there is something President Bush can take credit for - the teenage live birth rate increased by 3% in 2006, the first increase since 1991, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

We do not know if this is the start of a trend back up to the high of 61.8 live births per 1,000 females of 1991, but it sure is not a good sign, and can be added to the long list of evidence that abstinence-only education is not working for teens. We already know that abstinence-only education and not teaching teens about birth control leads to higher birth rates and sexually transmitted infection, and yet, the federal government continues to support it.

The other option is to teach comprehensive sexuality education which leads to delayed onset of sexual activity, higher rates of birth control use, higher rates of condom use, and fewer cases of sexually transmitted infection. Gee, it does not seem like a tough decision to me, but I guess that is why I am not the president.

Photo credit: ewedistrict

Labels: Healthline, Pregnancy, Sexuality Education

Permalink | 0 Comments| Email Post

Post your comment