I didn’t date a lot in high school. I had a bazillion guy friends, little to no boyfriends. Maybe it was because I was a commitment-phobe. Maybe it was because I was wiser than my 15 years and knew I should spend my time making friends and having fun instead. Maybe it was because no one swept me off my feet. ….or maybe it was because I spent 90% of my time looking something like this:

Junior high is a rough time. It’s awkward, it’s pimply…you’re trying to figure out who you are and where you belong. You’re trying not to panic about your body parts that are growing and doing weird, new things. Junior high is a lot of social experimentation. Not necessarily experimenting with drugs and alcohol, more like experimenting with friendships. Learning what is kind vs. what hurts people’s feelings. Learning what traits draw others in vs. alienate the general population. Learning the difference between high-energy and just plain obnoxious. I wouldn’t wish my junior high self on my worst enemy. But. When I had a bad day in junior high – when I was super obnoxious and…

*blows dust off keyboard* …is this thing still on? One of the most frequent questions I hear from parents of teenagers regarding social media is how to monitor their child’s online activity. How do I know what apps they use? How much involvement is too much? Isn’t “monitoring” an invasion of their privacy? Great questions. Tricky subject. Oh, and also? I really have no idea. I don’t know how much monitoring is too much. I don’t know what age your child is ready for what apps. I don’t know what site your child spends most of his or her time on. I think it’s a case-by-case, kid-by-kid conversation. Age plays a big role in these decisions,…

Waiting at the eye doctor yesterday, I read an article in People magazine about a beautiful 19 year old college student, Madison Holleran, who committed suicide last year. Something she said has been playing in my mind over and over. She talked about being in her dorm room late at night, scrolling through Instagram. She was already struggling with depression, but seeing post after post of her smiling, happy friends exacerbated it. “Why aren’t we happy like them?” she asked her roommate. Ugh. Suicide breaks my heart on a lot of levels, but the mention of social media along with suicide is…whatever word is 100x stronger than “horrible”. I talk…

I was in class with a group of middle schoolers recently, where the topic for discussion was…   …sex. (Always an exciting discussion, amiright??) So there they sat, beads of perspiration on their brow, palms sweating profusely. The awkwardness was palpable. The teacher was discussing abstinence; specifically, how to safeguard yourself from getting into questionable situations. He talked about setting a curfew with your boyfriend/girlfriend, not going into a bedroom alone, having accountability, etc. All good suggestions. Suggestions that were given to me at that age, actually. Suggestions that my own parents enforced in their home. Times haven’t changed. Except, as I began to realize, they kind of have. A few months ago…

We live in a society where every day people become famous. All the time. Sometimes for no reason. You don’t have to have a once-in-a-lifetime talent. You don’t have to be ridiculously wealthy. You don’t have to be an inventor or a pioneer or a world-changer. You really just need social media. And possibly an element of attractiveness. Or uniqueness. Look at Justin Bieber. He became Forbes’ 3rd most powerful celebrity in 2012, 5 years after being discovered by his YouTube channel. Or Shawn Mendes. His album is currently #1 on iTunes. You’ve probably never even heard of him, but his 6-second Vine videos (totally less than 40 minutes) have launched him into a full-fledged music…