It starts quietly, with a notification glowing on a teen’s phone—a message from someone new that feels exciting and risk free. For many teen boys, these moments happen in the everyday spaces where they scroll social media, play video games, and message with friends.      In these online places that feel safe and familiar, this once-harmless chat escalates into a whiplash of fear. After chatting for a while, the perpetrator shows the teen an explicit photo of them, either real or...

The year 2025 surfaced more than a few mental health trends to leave behind. Some recommendations for what to put in the rearview and what to nourish going forward. 1. Replacing Real Connection with AI 2025 has been the year of AI. It’s integrated in all we do, with the goal of efficiency, help, and sometimes comfort. But it can never replace the empathy, regulation, and understanding that come from human connection and bonding.  When stress hits, leaning primarily on AI can cause damage...

The New York Times, November 25, 2025 The numbers are staggering. Nearly one in four 17-year-old boys in the United States has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. In the early 1980s, a diagnosis of autism was delivered to one child in 2,500. That figure is now one in 31. Almost 32% of adolescents have at some point been given a diagnosis of anxiety. More than one in 10 have experienced a major depressive disorder, Jia Lynn Yang reports in an article published in The New York Times on...