While my eldest is still a couple years away from becoming a fully fledged teen I'm personally girding myself for the accompanying awkwardness and the probing uncomfortable questions and behavioral changes that can be part of the wonderful world of puberty. Ah yes puberty. A process all human beings go through some more gracefully than others and one which will transform my boy from an innocent Lego and book-obsessed child to a fuzzy mustachioed and leather jacketed street-tough teen. (Boy if all those episodes of Happy Days during my formative years have jaded my concept of teens what has repeated viewings of Sponge Bob done to my children?)

Anyway setting aside my discriminating and sophisticated tastes in television viewing gaining insight into the social psychological and emotional development of our children may enable us fellow parents to accompany our children through this exciting and at times overwhelming period in their lives with some additional empathy and wisdom.

Generally speaking teenagers can be a highly self-conscious group acutely aware of what their peers think. New research finds that teen self-consciousness is linked with specific physiological and brain responses that seem to emerge and peak in adolescence. Researchers found that an area of the brain specifically the medial prefrontal cortex is involved in psychosocial evaluation and whose activity can be measured as a response to psychological arousal through social evaluation. For example this area of the brain will become more activated in response to peer scrutiny. The response decreases over time as we enter into adulthood indicating that this heightened sense of self-awareness which may at times seem to border on narcissism is actually quite normal both socially and neurologically.

A behavior that is classically associated with adolescence is impulsivity. Challenging situations peer pressure and a desire to stretch one's wings through experimental and at times risky behavior be it drugs alcohol or sex can obviously lead to trouble. Constructive and thoughtful solutions can be implemented in a proactive way to minimize impulsivity. Activities like stress management relaxation techniques such as yoga and team-building which sublimates emphasize on the ego (There is no I in team) can prove to be quite helpful.

Cultivating healthy cohesive relationships with one's siblings also seems to encourage and enhance positive attitudes while increasing self-control and social competence.

Additionally sisters may be particularly important in the sibling dynamic. A recent study revealed that sisters had an ability to shelter their siblings from depression and associated feelings of alienation and self-consciousness. Interestingly it didn't matter what the age differential existed between the sister and her siblings.

Another intriguing facet of child-rearing that has been shown to solidify and balance what for this particular age group could be a tumultuous time period is an emphasis on spirituality. While religious practices for many families is an integral part of the family dynamic it appears that spiritual development and not religious practices per say (attending church services for instance) may be more impactful on a child's happiness. To make children happier we may need to encourage them to develop a strong sense of personal worth a more solid sense of their place in the world and a perception that their lives have meaning and value all while developing deep quality relationships.

There also appears to be something to the adage a happy wife means a happy life. Mom's general happiness is directly related to the overall happiness of the children much more so than the happiness of dad (as if I needed another reason to take up golf). This certainly makes sense as the mother is certainly the prime nurturer and central hub of the family unit. This article also emphasizes the importance of engaging in family activities that require personal interaction as opposed to isolationist or non-participatory types of behavior such as TV texting or video gaming.

The point being that the more stability support and cohesion that is developed in the family unit the easier the transition will be for those children going through puberty. And lord knows we parents need all the help we can get.

Michael Fuhrman D.C.