Single Parenting Reset Show: For Solo Parents of Tweens and Teens — Manage Behavior Problems, Reduce Screen Time & Improve Communication

Are screen time conversations turning into constant battles in your home?

In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, talks about digital boundaries for kids and teens — and why clear, calm boundaries can reduce fighting and protect what matters most.

You’ll learn how to create digital boundaries around sleep, school, safety, and connection, while still maintaining trust and relationship with your tween or teen.

Grab Tess’s Tech Reset Agreement or book a Parent Reset Strategy Session if you need help creating a realistic digital boundary plan for your family.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• What digital boundaries actually are
• Why unclear boundaries create more conflict
• How to connect screen time rules to family values
• Why privacy and parent oversight both matter
• How to use the four-part boundary framework: sleep, school, safety, connection
• What to say when your child pushes back

⭐Got screen time problems at home? Get the Tech Reset Agreement here 👉Download the Tech Reset Agreement

⭐️Join the Family and get your weekly Mindful Kids and Family Journal here: https://www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com/join-the-family (Get ready for lessons, podcast leads, offers for parents, and ways to win free parent coaching or masterclasses)

📧Connect with Therese (Tess) Connolly, LCSW, CCC here👇: [email protected] Website: www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com

🆘 Need 1:1 Support? Book right here to connect with Tess for a 45-minute FREE “Parent Reset Strategy Session”: Parent Reset Strategy Session

The Single Parenting Reset Show supports single moms, working moms, and all parents with practical parenting tips on screen time, emotional regulation, co-parenting, stress relief, setting boundaries, building trust, and raising confident tweens and teens, while tackling tech addiction, behavior problems, and parent burnout with conscious parenting strategies for stronger family connection.

#singleparents #parentingtweensandteens #ScreenTime #behaviorproblems #Communication

Does your teen seem unable to put the phone down, even when they know they should?

In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, explains why phone limits matter, but why limits alone are often not enough to change the pattern. If you have tried taking the phone away and still end up in the same screen time battle, this episode will help you understand what may be happening underneath.

You’ll learn how to look at what your teen is getting from the phone — connection, escape, entertainment, relief, or a sense of control — and how to pair limits with structure, replacement habits, and connection.

Grab Tess’s Tech Reset Agreement or book a Parent Reset Strategy Session if your family needs help building healthier phone habits.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why taking the phone away does not always solve the problem
• What your teen may be getting from their phone
• How to set limits without shame
• Why replacement habits matter
• How to help your teen decompress without endless scrolling
• One simple reset to try this week

⭐Got screen time problems at home? Get the Tech Reset Agreement here 👉Download the Tech Reset Agreement

⭐️Join the Family and get your weekly Mindful Kids and Family Journal here: https://www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com/join-the-family (Get ready for lessons, podcast leads, offers for parents, and ways to win free parent coaching or masterclasses)

📧Connect with Therese (Tess) Connolly, LCSW, CCC here👇: [email protected] Website: www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com

🆘 Need 1:1 Support? Book right here to connect with Tess for a 45-minute FREE “Parent Reset Strategy Session”: Parent Reset Strategy Session

The Single Parenting Reset Show supports single moms, working moms, and all parents with practical parenting tips on screen time, emotional regulation, co-parenting, stress relief, setting boundaries, building trust, and raising confident tweens and teens, while tackling tech addiction, behavior problems, and parent burnout with conscious parenting strategies for stronger family connection.

#singleparents #parentingtweensandteens #ScreenTime #behaviorproblems #Communication

Are your screen time rules constantly turning into arguments, reminders, threats, or power struggles?

In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, explains why many screen time family rules fail and how to create rules that are clear, realistic, and easier for tweens and teens to follow.

You’ll learn how to move away from vague rules like “get off your phone” and toward practical agreements that protect sleep, homework, family connection, and emotional regulation.

Grab Tess’s Tech Reset Agreement or book a Parent Reset Strategy Session if your family needs a calmer, more connected screen time reset.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why vague screen time rules create arguments
• Why rules made during conflict usually fail
• How to create one clear screen time rule
• Why sleep is often the best place to start
• How to include your teen’s voice without giving up your authority
• How to model healthier screen habits as a parent

⭐Got screen time problems at home? Get the Tech Reset Agreement here 👉Download the Tech Reset Agreement

⭐️Join the Family and get your weekly Mindful Kids and Family Journal here: https://www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com/join-the-family (Get ready for lessons, podcast leads, offers for parents, and ways to win free parent coaching or masterclasses)

📧Connect with Therese (Tess) Connolly, LCSW, CCC here👇: [email protected] Website: www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com

🆘 Need 1:1 Support? Book right here to connect with Tess for a 45-minute FREE “Parent Reset Strategy Session”: Parent Reset Strategy Session

The Single Parenting Reset Show supports single moms, working moms, and all parents with practical parenting tips on screen time, emotional regulation, co-parenting, stress relief, setting boundaries, building trust, and raising confident tweens and teens, while tackling tech addiction, behavior problems, and parent burnout with conscious parenting strategies for stronger family connection.

#singleparents #parentingtweensandteens #ScreenTime #behaviorproblems #Communication

Is your teen constantly on their phone, gaming late at night, scrolling endlessly, or melting down when you ask them to get off a screen?

In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, talks about digital addiction in teens in a practical and non-shaming way. You’ll learn why screens feel so hard for tweens and teens to stop using, what signs may show that screen time is out of balance, and how to respond without turning every night into a battle.

You’ll walk away understanding that the goal is not to become the screen police. The goal is to become a calm, clear leader who helps your child protect sleep, school, connection, and emotional regulation.

Grab Tess’s Tech Reset Agreement or book a Parent Reset Strategy Session if screen time has become one of the biggest conflict points in your home.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why “digital addiction” is a useful SEO phrase but needs a careful parenting lens
• How to tell whether screen time is replacing sleep, movement, homework, or connection
• Why your teen may know better but still struggle to stop
• How to talk about screen time without shame
• One simple screen time reset to try this week

⭐Got screen time problems at home? Get the Tech Reset Agreement here 👉Download the Tech Reset Agreement

⭐️Join the Family and get your weekly Mindful Kids and Family Journal here: https://www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com/join-the-family (Get ready for lessons, podcast leads, offers for parents, and ways to win free parent coaching or masterclasses)

📧Connect with Therese (Tess) Connolly, LCSW, CCC here👇: [email protected] Website: www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com

🆘 Need 1:1 Support? Book right here to connect with Tess for a 45-minute FREE “Parent Reset Strategy Session”: Parent Reset Strategy Session

The Single Parenting Reset Show supports single moms, working moms, and all parents with practical parenting tips on screen time, emotional regulation, co-parenting, stress relief, setting boundaries, building trust, and raising confident tweens and teens, while tackling tech addiction, behavior problems, and parent burnout with conscious parenting strategies for stronger family connection.

#singleparents #parentingtweensandteens #ScreenTime #behaviorproblems #Communication

Have you ever wondered what parent coaching actually is?

Maybe you have heard the term but are not sure whether it is therapy, parenting advice, family coaching, or something else entirely.

In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, explains parent coaching in clear, simple language and shares how it can help families move out of repeated conflict and into better communication, stronger boundaries, and deeper connection.

Parent coaching is not about blaming parents or fixing kids.

It is about helping families understand the patterns they are stuck in.

Why does the same argument keep happening?

Why does your teen shut down?

Why does your tween push back?

Why do screen time, school, chores, anxiety, or respect issues keep turning into daily battles?

Why do you feel like you are either being too strict or too permissive?

Tess also explains how parent coaching differs from therapy, and why her background as a licensed clinical social worker informs the way she supports parents and families.

Coaching is not therapy. It is not diagnosis, clinical treatment, or crisis care. But a mental health-informed lens can help parents better understand what may be underneath a child’s behavior.

In this episode, you will learn:

• What parent coaching is in simple language
• How parent coaching differs from therapy
• Why parent coaching is not mental health treatment
• How a mental health-informed parent coach can help you understand behavior differently
• How parent coaching supports communication, boundaries, repair, routines, and family dynamics
• Why parents do not have to choose between being permissive and being controlling
• How to become a steadier, more connected leader in your family
• Why repair after conflict is one of the most important parenting skills
• How parent coaching may include your tween, teen, or young adult when they are willing
• Why a coach can sometimes become a bridge between parent and child
• Why relationship and connection are at the heart of everything

Tess shares her belief that the best parenting skill is already inside of you: the relationship and connection you have with your child. That is what they leave home with, not a parenting strategy.

If your family feels stuck in the same patterns and you are ready for practical, compassionate, grounded support, book a 45-minute Parent Reset Call with Tess.

This call is a chance to talk through what is happening in your family, what you have already tried, and whether parent coaching could help you take the next step.

Book your 45-minute Parent Reset Call through the link in the show notes.

⭐Got screen time problems at home? Get the Tech Reset Agreement here 👉Download the Tech Reset Agreement

⭐️Join the Family and get your weekly Mindful Kids and Family Journal here: https://www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com/join-the-family (Get ready for lessons, podcast leads, offers for parents, and ways to win free parent coaching or masterclasses)

📧Connect with Therese (Tess) Connolly, LCSW, CCC here👇: [email protected] Website: www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com

🆘 Need 1:1 Support? Book right here to connect with Tess for a 45-minute FREE “Parent Reset Strategy Session”: Parent Reset Strategy Session

The Single Parenting Reset Show supports single moms, working moms, and all parents with practical parenting tips on screen time, emotional regulation, co-parenting, stress relief, setting boundaries, building trust, and raising confident tweens and teens, while tackling tech addiction, behavior problems, and parent burnout with conscious parenting strategies for stronger family connection.

#singleparents #parentingtweensandteens #ScreenTime #behaviorproblems #Communication

Does your teen shut down, give one-word answers, snap back, or avoid hard conversations altogether?

If so, the issue may not be that your teen does not care. They may not yet have the skills to communicate when they feel overwhelmed, judged, anxious, embarrassed, or defensive.

In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, explores teen communication coaching and why communication is one of the most important life skills tweens and teens can build.

Communication is the foundation of every relationship your teen has — with you, friends, teachers, coaches, siblings, future partners, and eventually coworkers and college roommates.

CDC data shows that many teens are carrying significant emotional stress, with 39.7% of high school students reporting persistent sadness or hopelessness in 2023. Pew Research Center also reports that 96% of teens use the internet daily, and 46% are online almost constantly, which means teens are communicating all the time — but not always in ways that build real-life relationship skills.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why teens often shut down during parent conversations
• What teen communication coaching looks like in real life
• How to help your teen speak up without forcing them to talk
• Why tone, timing, and body language matter before the words even begin
• Simple scripts parents can use when teens are defensive, rude, or quiet
• How single parents can lower communication pressure while still holding boundaries
• The “Notice, Name, Need” framework for calmer conversations

If communication with your tween or teen has become tense, distant, or reactive, book a 45-minute Parent Reset Call with Tess. Together, you can look at the patterns happening in your home and identify practical ways to rebuild trust, reduce conflict, and help your teen open up.

⭐Got screen time problems at home? Get the Tech Reset Agreement here 👉Download the Tech Reset Agreement

⭐️Join the Family and get your weekly Mindful Kids and Family Journal here: https://www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com/join-the-family (Get ready for lessons, podcast leads, offers for parents, and ways to win free parent coaching or masterclasses)

📧Connect with Therese (Tess) Connolly, LCSW, CCC here👇: [email protected] Website: www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com

🆘 Need 1:1 Support? Book right here to connect with Tess for a 45-minute FREE “Parent Reset Strategy Session”: Parent Reset Strategy Session

The Single Parenting Reset Show supports single moms, working moms, and all parents with practical parenting tips on screen time, emotional regulation, co-parenting, stress relief, setting boundaries, building trust, and raising confident tweens and teens, while tackling tech addiction, behavior problems, and parent burnout with conscious parenting strategies for stronger family connection.

#singleparents #parentingtweensandteens #ScreenTime #behaviorproblems #Communication

Teen mental health struggles are rising fast — and many parents are seeing more anxiety, emotional shutdown, irritability, hopelessness, and overwhelm in their teens than ever before.

According to the CDC’s 2024 Youth Risk Behavior Survey using 2023 teen data:

• Nearly 40% of teens reported persistent sadness or hopelessness
• 20% seriously considered suicide
• Nearly 1 in 10 reported attempting suicide

Parents are scared, exhausted, and often unsure how to help without making things worse.

In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, breaks down:

• What is really happening with teen mental health right now
• Why emotional overwhelm often looks like attitude or withdrawal
• The parenting mistake that unintentionally increases shutdown
• Why emotional safety matters more than constant fixing
• How to support anxious and emotionally overwhelmed teens
• What single parents especially need to understand right now

Tess shares nervous-system-aware parenting strategies, emotional regulation tools, and practical ways to connect with teens without power struggles.

If you have a teenager who seems:

• emotionally overwhelmed
• anxious
• irritable
• withdrawn
• unmotivated
• glued to screens
• emotionally reactive
• or difficult to reach lately…

this episode will help you better understand what may actually be happening underneath the behavior.

You’ll walk away with concrete tools to:

• reduce emotional shutdown
• strengthen connection
• support your teen’s nervous system
• and become a calmer emotional anchor at home

Listen to Episode 260 of The Single Parenting Reset Show: Teen Mental Health: What Parents Need to Know Right Now (2026)

And if this episode resonates with you:

• Join the parenting newsletter family
• Share this episode with another parent
• And subscribe for more support around parenting tweens and teens with connection, boundaries, and emotional leadership

⭐Got screen time problems at home? Get the Tech Reset Agreement here 👉Download the Tech Reset Agreement

⭐️Join the Family and get your weekly Mindful Kids and Family Journal here: https://www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com/join-the-family (Get ready for lessons, podcast leads, offers for parents, and ways to win free parent coaching or masterclasses)

📧Connect with Therese (Tess) Connolly, LCSW, CCC here👇: [email protected] Website: www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com

🆘 Need 1:1 Support? Book right here to connect with Tess for a 45-minute FREE “Parent Reset Strategy Session”: Parent Reset Strategy Session

The Single Parenting Reset Show supports single moms, working moms, and all parents with practical parenting tips on screen time, emotional regulation, co-parenting, stress relief, setting boundaries, building trust, and raising confident tweens and teens, while tackling tech addiction, behavior problems, and parent burnout with conscious parenting strategies for stronger family connection.

#singleparents #parentingtweensandteens #ScreenTime #behaviorproblems #Communication

Is your teen or preteen having big emotional reactions, shutting down, snapping back, or melting down over what seems like a small issue?

In this episode of The Single Parenting Reset Show, Tess Connolly, LCSW, talks with Dr. Rosina McAlpine, work and family wellbeing expert from Win Win Parenting, about how parents can help tweens and teens build emotional intelligence and learn to manage their emotions more effectively.

Dr. Rosina explains that emotional intelligence is not just about “calming down.” It includes several skills: knowing your own emotions, managing those emotions, recognizing emotions in others, and handling relationships.

These skills are connected to better relationships, stronger school and work performance, improved mental health, better physical health, and greater life satisfaction.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• What emotional intelligence really means
• Why emotional intelligence matters for teen behavior and wellbeing
• How parents can help teens notice and name their emotions
• Why emotional regulation has to be taught step by step
• How screen time, gaming, and social media can affect mood
• Simple ways parents can model emotional regulation
• How to help teens build empathy and relationship skills
• Why “look for the win-win” can reduce conflict at home

If your teen struggles with emotional outbursts, irritability, shutting down, or conflict, this episode will help you understand what is happening and how to begin building emotional intelligence one small step at a time.

Listen now and start with one simple shift: help your teen notice what they are feeling before trying to fix the behavior.

Dr. Rosina an internationally recognized expert on parenting, managing work and family life, working parents, researcher, and media contributor. Dr. Rosina is the founder of Win Win Parenting, a research-based program that is delivered in small, medium and large organisations and workplaces for all levels of government to inspire and resource working parents with strategies to better navigate day-to-day parenting challenges, support their mental health, manage work-life balance, reduce stress, and prevent burnout.

Dr. Rosina can offer a unique perspective –she has been featured on TV, print and radio media platforms – highlights include: the New York Post, The Today Show, with a regular spot on ABC Radio, and has spoken at corporate events globally. https://www.winwinparenting.com/media

https://www.drrosina.com/media

⭐Got screen time problems at home? Get the Tech Reset Agreement here 👉Download the Tech Reset Agreement

⭐️Join the Family and get your weekly Mindful Kids and Family Journal here: https://www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com/join-the-family (Get ready for lessons, podcast leads, offers for parents, and ways to win free parent coaching or masterclasses)

📧Connect with Therese (Tess) Connolly, LCSW, CCC here👇: [email protected] Website: www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com

🆘 Need 1:1 Support? Book right here to connect with Tess for a 45-minute FREE “Parent Reset Strategy Session”: Parent Reset Strategy Session

The Single Parenting Reset Show supports single moms, working moms, and all parents with practical parenting tips on screen time, emotional regulation, co-parenting, stress relief, setting boundaries, building trust, and raising confident tweens and teens, while tackling tech addiction, behavior problems, and parent burnout with conscious parenting strategies for stronger family connection.

#singleparents #parentingtweensandteens #ScreenTime #behaviorproblems #Communication

Is your teen talking back… rolling their eyes… or saying things that feel completely disrespectful?

You’re not alone—and more importantly, you’re not doing anything wrong.

Teen attitude problems are one of the most common (and most triggering) challenges for parents of tweens and teens.

But how you respond in those moments can either escalate the situation… or completely shift it.

In this episode, we’re breaking down what’s really happening when your teen shows attitude—and why reacting the way most parents do actually makes it worse.

You’ll learn how to stay calm, set boundaries, and respond in a way that teaches respect instead of creating more conflict.

Because your teen doesn’t need more punishment…

They need better guidance.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why teen attitude problems often get worse when parents react emotionally
• How to respond to a disrespectful teen without escalating the situation
• What to say in the moment when your teen talks back
• How to set clear boundaries without damaging your relationship
• Why repair conversations matter more than lectures
• Simple scripts you can use immediately

This approach helps you reduce conflict, build trust, and actually teach your teen how to communicate with more respect.

If you’re ready to feel calmer and more confident parenting your tween or teen…

👉 Follow the show so you don’t miss weekly episodes

👉 Share this episode with a parent who needs it

👉 And if you want more support, grab your Tech Reset Agreement or book a Parent Reset session through the link in the show notes

⭐Got screen time problems at home? Get the Tech Reset Agreement here 👉Download the Tech Reset Agreement

⭐️Join the Family and get your weekly Mindful Kids and Family Journal here: https://www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com/join-the-family (Get ready for lessons, podcast leads, offers for parents, and ways to win free parent coaching or masterclasses)

📧Connect with Therese (Tess) Connolly, LCSW, CCC here👇: [email protected] Website: www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com

🆘 Need 1:1 Support? Book right here to connect with Tess for a 45-minute FREE “Parent Reset Strategy Session”: Parent Reset Strategy Session

The Single Parenting Reset Show supports single moms, working moms, and all parents with practical parenting tips on screen time, emotional regulation, co-parenting, stress relief, setting boundaries, building trust, and raising confident tweens and teens, while tackling tech addiction, behavior problems, and parent burnout with conscious parenting strategies for stronger family connection.

#singleparents #parentingtweensandteens #ScreenTime #behaviorproblems #Communication

If teen screen time is becoming a daily battle in your home…

and your screen time limits for teens don’t seem to be working…

you are not alone.

You take the phone away.

You set rules.

You try to stay consistent.

And still… it turns into arguments, eye rolls, or sneaky behavior.

The truth is…

teen screen time is not just about the phone.

It’s about what the phone is replacing.

Sleep.

Homework.

Responsibility.

Connection.

And when limits are the only strategy…

your teen doesn’t learn how to manage screen time — they learn how to resist it.

In this episode, you’ll learn how to actually manage teen screen time in a way that reduces conflict and builds responsibility.

You’ll walk away with:

✔️ A new way to think about screen time that goes beyond just minutes

✔️ How to create clear, effective screen time rules for teenagers

✔️ A simple framework to turn daily battles into calm, consistent structure

This is the shift from reacting…

to leading.

⭐Got screen time problems at home? Get the Tech Reset Agreement here 👉Download the Tech Reset Agreement

⭐️Join the Family and get your weekly Mindful Kids and Family Journal here: https://www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com/join-the-family (Get ready for lessons, podcast leads, offers for parents, and ways to win free parent coaching or masterclasses)

📧Connect with Therese (Tess) Connolly, LCSW, CCC here👇: [email protected] Website: www.mindfulkidsandfamilies.com

🆘 Need 1:1 Support? Book right here to connect with Tess for a 45-minute FREE “Parent Reset Strategy Session”: Parent Reset Strategy Session

The Single Parenting Reset Show supports single moms, working moms, and all parents with practical parenting tips on screen time, emotional regulation, co-parenting, stress relief, setting boundaries, building trust, and raising confident tweens and teens, while tackling tech addiction, behavior problems, and parent burnout with conscious parenting strategies for stronger family connection.

#singleparents #parentingtweensandteens #ScreenTime #behaviorproblems #Communication