What were they thinking? An expert on teenage brains explains

In It: Raising Kids Who Learn Differently

From school to friends to home, being a teenager is tough. Also tough? Raising one!

On this episode of In It, hosts Gretchen Vierstra and Rachel Bozek welcome Karen Wilson. Karen is a clinical neuropsychologist in Los Angeles and a professor at UCLA. She also supervises assessment of children and adults with learning, thinking, and social emotional difficulties.

Tune in to get Karen’s expert advice about supporting your child through the teen years.

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Related resources

• How to help high schoolers gain self-control
• Developmental milestones for teenagers
• What to do when your teen or tween is lonely
• Listen: When kids and teens have tantrums: how to help
• Listen: Unpacking the teen mental health crisis: How we got here and what to do about it

Timestamps

(01:35) What’s going on in teens’ brains

(06:10) When teens want more independence

(16:56) Sexual and gender identities

(21:48) The awesome side of teens

Understood is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people with learning and thinking differences, like ADHD and dyslexia. If you want to help us continue this work, donate at understood.org/give