Parenting Teenagers Untangled

By Rachel Richards

If you've found yourself wondering why is my teenager suddenly so angry? How much screen time is too much? Should I take their phone away at night? Why have they lost all motivation? What do I do a

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How many episodes does Parenting Teenagers Untangled have?

The podcast currently has 247 episodes available.

Best of Parenting Teenagers Untangled

The most played episodes among Podcast App listeners.

Number 1: A Better Way for Parents to talk to Teens About Screen Time: Fear Less & Wonder More
Ask Rachel anything We’re living through an age where it can feel like our teenagers’ entire lives are happening behind a screen we can’t see. Meanwhile mental health problems in teens are a rising problem that is being blamed on their devices. The instinctive response for many of us is to clamp down: ban certain apps, monitor every move, or take away devices altogether. But as Professor Candice Odgers put it so powerfully:“You can’t ban your way out of a mental health crisis. You have to build instead.” In this Wonder Room conversation Katharine Radice and I explore how parents can move beyond panic about phones and toward curious, constructive conversations that help teens feel safe enough to be honest. These are some of the core things we cover in this episode: Shifting focus from the phone to the childPhone use is often a symptom of underlying distress or needs, not the core problem.Moving from monitoring to understandingHours and apps matter less than the quality of your teen’s relationship with their online world and how it makes them feel.Creating conditions for honesty instead of forcing liesAvoid loaded, judgmental questions and big emotional reactions that make teens hide or lie about what they’re doing online.Naming the role of algorithms and external forcesAsk “What is the algorithm feeding you?” to shift some responsibility away from the teen and toward the tech design, making honest conversations safer.Scaffolding self-reflection and self-regulationUse curious questions (“Are you stuck?”, “Any surprises in your screen time?”) to help teens build lifelong skills in reviewing and adjusting their own digital habits.For my Fearless Parenting community members I have gathered the key ideas and given you practical questions you can use tonight with your teen. Katherine has a Substack full of help and ideas for parents of teenagers Support the show Please hit the follow button if you like the podcast, and share it with anyone who might benefit. You can review us on Apple podcasts by going to the show page, scrolling down to the bottom where you can click on a star then you can leave your message. Please don't hesitate to seek the advice of a specialist if you're not coping. There's no shame in reaching out for support. When you look after yourself your entire family benefits. Find all the tips from the episode on Substack: My email [email protected] My website has a blog, searchable episodes, and ways to contact me Instagram Facebook
September 13, 202639min
Number 2: Teenagers, AI & Friendship: Is ChatGPT Changing How Our Kids Connect? Parenting Unpacked in the Wonder Room
Ask Rachel anything Is AI changing the way teenagers understand friendship? Should we worry about teens turning to chatbots for advice and emotional support? And what can parents do to help their children build strong, real-world relationships? Welcome to a new Teenagers Untangled Community Catchup, where Rachel Richards is joined by teacher, author and mum of two teenagers Katherine Radice to talk through what's happening in the world of teenagers — from the news and the latest research to the problems parents are dealing with at home. This week, we start with GCSE results and teenage motivation. How should parents respond when results aren't what their teenager hoped for? Why does effort matter even when the grades aren't brilliant? And could constantly criticising schools actually make it harder for our teenagers to engage with the adults who are trying to help them? Then we turn to teenagers and AI. As AI chatbots become an increasingly normal part of young people's lives, we ask what happens when teenagers start using them not simply for homework or information, but for emotional advice and companionship. Unlike human friends, an AI chatbot is available whenever you want it. It doesn't need anything from you. It doesn't get tired, disagree in quite the same way or require the give-and-take that real relationships demand. But is that actually a problem? We discuss why disagreement and friction are important parts of healthy relationships, helping teenagers develop their identity, challenge their assumptions and learn how to live alongside people who don't always think exactly as they do. That leads us into teenage friendships: why teenagers can become so focused on finding a “best friend”, why friendships inevitably go through difficult patches, and how parents can help when a friend betrays a confidence, leaves their child out or hurts them. Rather than immediately deciding that the other teenager is a “bad person”, we discuss how friendship difficulties can become opportunities to learn about trust, forgiveness, apologies and understanding other people's perspectives. Finally, we look at something parents can easily overlook: our own friendships. Our teenagers are watching how we talk about other people, how we deal with disagreement and rejection, and whether friendship and community have a meaningful place in our adult lives. Sometimes one of the best ways to teach our teenagers how to build relationships is simply to let them see us doing it. A wide-ranging, practical conversation about teenagers and AI, ChatGPT, teenage friendships, GCSE results, school, parenting teenagers and helping young people build healthy real-world relationships. Support the show Please hit the follow button if you like the podcast, and share it with anyone who might benefit. You can review us on Apple podcasts by going to the show page, scrolling down to the bottom where you can click on a star then you can leave your message. Please don't hesitate to seek the advice of a specialist if you're not coping. There's no shame in reaching out for support. When you look after yourself your entire family benefits. Find all the tips from the episode on Substack: My email [email protected] My website has a blog, searchable episodes, and ways to contact me Instagram Facebook
August 23, 202633min
Number 3: Nagging Your Teenager? We Parents Talk Family Routines, in the Wonder Room
Ask Rachel anything As a teenager, I grew up in a home with almost no routines. No one talked about what needed to happen when, and I remember constantly thinking, “What am I supposed to do now?” Life felt like reinventing the wheel every day. I didn’t feel safe, and I felt a lot of energy went into trying to cope in the chaos. Now, as a parent and host of Teenagers Untangled, I’ve come to see routines not as dreary box‑ticking exercises, but as powerful tools for connection, calm, and joy. In this Wonder Room conversation, I sat down with teacher and parent Katharine Radice to explore how routines, habits, and rituals can serve our teenagers—and us. You can find all of the notes and recommendations made in this bonus episode by clicking here: Sign up for free emails to let you know when a new episode comes out www.teenagersuntangled.com Support the show Please hit the follow button if you like the podcast, and share it with anyone who might benefit. You can review us on Apple podcasts by going to the show page, scrolling down to the bottom where you can click on a star then you can leave your message. Please don't hesitate to seek the advice of a specialist if you're not coping. There's no shame in reaching out for support. When you look after yourself your entire family benefits. Find all the tips from the episode on Substack: My email [email protected] My website has a blog, searchable episodes, and ways to contact me Instagram Facebook
September 06, 202630min
Number 4: Teen Girls Mental Health, Intense Pressure, and How Parents Can Help
Ask Rachel anything If your teenage daughter says, “I have anxiety,” “my ADHD was out of control today,” or calls a friend “toxic,” it can feel both strangely sophisticated and oddly shallow at the same time. She has language. She has labels. But somehow, you’re still not sure what’s really going on inside her. In this episode with psychiatrist Dr Suzanne Garfinkel-Crowell, author of Girlhood Translated: Understanding Girls in the Age of Therapy Speak and Self-Diagnosis, we pulled back the curtain on what this language is doing for girls — and what it’s doing to them. I particularly loved Suzanne’s tip for us parents: ‘The biggest problem with therapy speak is when it’s a conversation stopper, because really, these words should be conversation starters.’ In the discussion she gives us parents ideas on how to move beyond the language our kids are using, and help them understand what’s really going on. This isn’t an “anti-diagnosis” conversation. It’s about understanding how the language of mental health, the DSM, and social media are shaping girlhood, and how we as parents can respond in a way that brings us closer instead of shutting our daughters down. Dr Suzanne Garfinkle-Crowell If you'd like written notes to remind you about the points in this episode, or you'd like to think more about it, come to my Substack Support the show Please hit the follow button if you like the podcast, and share it with anyone who might benefit. You can review us on Apple podcasts by going to the show page, scrolling down to the bottom where you can click on a star then you can leave your message. Please don't hesitate to seek the advice of a specialist if you're not coping. There's no shame in reaching out for support. When you look after yourself your entire family benefits. Find all the tips from the episode on Substack: My email [email protected] My website has a blog, searchable episodes, and ways to contact me Instagram Facebook
September 02, 202649min
Number 5: Motivating Boys in a World of Gaming, AI & Porn.
Ask Rachel anything If your son seems apathetic, glued to gaming, or strangely unbothered by school, you are not alone, and you are not imagining it. I decided to create this discussion because I have been contacted by so many parents about the lacklustre attitudes they are seeing in their sons, looking for advice on what to do. Around the world, boys are falling behind academically, drifting socially, and retreating into screens. Meanwhile, girls are outstripping boys at school and university, and often hiding their own struggles under high achievement (a topic I recently covered both here with Dr Tara Porter and here with Dr Suzanne Garfinkle-Crowell.) In this episode, I talk to Dr Leonard Sax—family physician, psychologist, and author of Boys Adrift and Why Gender Matters—about why so many boys are losing motivation and the practical things parents can do about it, starting now. You’ll learn:What’s really going on with boys today and why we should all care, because this isn’t just a schooling issue; it’s a future-partner, future-father, future-society issue.How modern schooling can switch boys off.Gaming: when it’s harmless and when it’s stealing your son’s life, including clear, research-backed limits and rules you can put in place at home.ADHD or something else? The hidden role of sleep and screens.Masculinity, role models, and “good men” in a disrespectful culture.Porn, AI “girlfriends”, and the pull away from real relationships.Most importantly: how to pull your son back into real life.Dr Sax published his first version of this book twenty years ago and the issues it described; falling male achievement, rising screen immersion, AI companions, and collapsing couple relationships, are accelerating rather than levelling off. The habits and boundaries we choose while our sons are still at home may shape not just his grades, but his ability to form healthy relationships, be a good partner and father, and build a life he cares about in the real world. If you’re worried about an unmotivated, gaming-obsessed, or emotionally flat son, this conversation will give you clarity, language, and concrete steps you can start using today. Don’t forget to share this with anyone who is struggling with the issues or who might find it helpful. Link to my Substack where you can find all of the notes and a handy PDF cheat sheet for parenting Support the show Please hit the follow button if you like the podcast, and share it with anyone who might benefit. You can review us on Apple podcasts by going to the show page, scrolling down to the bottom where you can click on a star then you can leave your message. Please don't hesitate to seek the advice of a specialist if you're not coping. There's no shame in reaching out for support. When you look after yourself your entire family benefits. Find all the tips from the episode on Substack: My email [email protected] My website has a blog, searchable episodes, and ways to contact me Instagram Facebook
September 23, 20261h 1min