Joyful Courage for Parenting Teens

Latest Episodes:

Eps 678: Executive Function Middle School Edition Oct 27, 2026

Show notes

Your middle schooler can remember every word of a song they heard twice and still have no idea how long the science project will take. That's development. In this solo show, I dig into executive function in middle school, the brain's air traffic control system, and why the skills middle school leans on hardest are the last ones to develop. Ages 10 to 15 bring a rapid burst of growth, and our ADHD kiddos get there on a later timeline.

For more information and show notes go to: https://www.besproutable.com/podcasts/eps-678-executive-function-middle-school/

Also, thank you to our current sponsor, HeyPolo. Protect your loved ones without spying on them. Go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://heypolo.com/JOYFUL⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and use code JOYFUL for 70% off your first year.

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Eps 677: Out-of-Control Teenagers with Scott Sells. Oct 20, 2026

Show notes

If your house doesn't look like the ones in the parenting posts, this one's for you. Dr. Scott Sells has spent 30 years with families parenting an out of control teenager. We talk about where typical teen behavior ends and extreme begins, and how we can unknowingly feed our kiddo's anxiety. Scott walks us through his 30-day positive teen report and why he has parents do dress rehearsals. We cover when it's time to call in a professional.

Guest bio

Dr. Scott Sells is the founder of two evidence-based treatment models, Parenting with Love and Limits and Family Systems Trauma, used by therapists across the U.S. and Europe. He holds a PhD and an MSW from Florida State, has taught social work at the university level, and is the author of three books, including Parenting Your Out-of-Control Teenager, which has sold more than 100,000 copies and is now out in a revised edition. He has spent 30 years with families at the hardest end of this work. He lives in Montana with his wife and twin sons. Find him at https://extremeteen.com/.

Find more info and show notes at https://www.besproutable.com/podcasts/eps-677-out-of-control-teenager/

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Eps 676: Amber Traina, Positive Discipline Today Oct 13, 2026

Show notes

Positive Discipline has been the book so many of us reach for since 1981, and now there’s a new edition. My guest Amber Traina, granddaughter of Dr. Jane Nelsen, worked alongside Jane on the revision and the new chapter on technology. We talk about why kind and firm sits at the heart of it and the difference between niceness and kindness. Amber shares the tech audit and why connection is what brings our teens to us when they mess up.

Find more info and show notes at: https://www.besproutable.com/podcasts/eps-676-positive-discipline-today

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Eps 675: When Your Teens Grades Start Slipping Oct 06, 2026

Show notes

It's that time of year... The grade portal shows a pile of missing assignments, and taking the phone away feels like the only leverage you have. In this solo show I start in that moment with a teen who's behind in school, then work outward through the intentional ecosystem. We look at how your house runs and how connected you and your teen are, then at what you make those grades mean. I cover mistaken goals, executive functioning, natural consequences, and when to get help.

For more info and show notes go to: https://www.besproutable.com/podcasts/eps-675-when-teen-grades-start-slipping

Join the Living Joyful Courage Membership program now to take advantage of 30% off and the 6 week PD for parents of teens class. Go to ⁠www.besproutable.com/ljc ⁠and use code PODCAST30 at checkout.

Also, thank you to our current sponsor, HeyPolo. Protect your loved ones without spying on them. Go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://heypolo.com/JOYFUL⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and use code JOYFUL for 70% off your first year.

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Eps 674: Co-Parenting Boundaries with Amy Armstrong Sep 29, 2026

Show notes

You can do everything right and someone in your life can still make it hard. In this episode, I talk with Amy Armstrong, LISW-S, founder of the Center for Family Resolution, about co-parenting boundaries and staying grounded when another person's reactivity pulls you off center.

Amy shares her own story of chronic conflict, why trying to understand a difficult person rarely brings the control we hope for, and her working definition of a boundary: what you are willing and able to do. We also talk about why doing more is often a fight-or-flight reaction, how to protect kids from conflict without pretending everything is fine, and when teens get a voice in parenting plans.

Amy put together a free kit for Joyful Courage listeners, with co-parenting communication scripts, a five-minute nervous system reset, and a guide for boundaries that aren't working: podcast.thecenterforfamilyresolution.com/courage

Find Amy at the Center for Family Resolution and on TikTok at Amy Armstrong Conflict Free.

Learn more about this episode, sign up for our newsletter and find support for parents of kids of all ages at https://www.besproutable.com/podcasts/eps-674-co-parenting-boundaries-with-amy-armstrong

Join the Living Joyful Courage Membership program now to take advantage of 30% off and the 6 week PD for parents of teens class. Go to www.besproutable.com/ljc and use code PODCAST30 at checkout.

Also, thank you to our current sponsor, HeyPolo. Protect your loved ones without spying on them. Go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://heypolo.com/JOYFUL⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and use code JOYFUL for 70% off your first year.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Eps 673: Stuart Slavin on Teen Pressure Sep 22, 2026

Show notes

Dr. Stuart Slavin has spent decades studying what pressure does to young people, and what he found flips the usual conversation. When he cut class time and letter grades at a medical school, depression and anxiety dropped by 80% and board scores went up.

A few things from our conversation:

→ Teen mental health started declining long before smartphones
→ The average teen in his research sleeps six and a half hours
→ Maladaptive perfectionism is skyrocketing, in our kids and in us
→ "Pressure not to disappoint my parents" ranks higher than direct pressure from parents
→ Aim for the college your kiddo will graduate from

For more info and show notes go to https://www.besproutable.com/podcasts/teen-achievement-pressure-stuart-slavin/

Also, thank you to our current sponsor, HeyPolo. Protect your loved ones without spying on them. Go to ⁠⁠⁠https://heypolo.com/JOYFUL⁠⁠⁠ and use code JOYFUL for 70% off your first year.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Eps 672: Letting Go of the Story Sep 15, 2026

Show notes

Three weeks ago I told you about the text I got in an Atlanta hotel room. Today I share what happened after I got home, what I tried, and what finally shifted. This is the third show in the series, and the one the others were building toward. We look at all four ecosystem questions at once, the narrative I didn't know I was holding, and the anchor word practice I still use. It's also the last time I'll tell this story.

For more info and show notes go to https://www.besproutable.com/podcasts/eps-672-letting-go-of-the-story/

Immersion Week starts Monday, 9/21!! Get in there - www.besproutable.com/immersion

Also, thank you to our current sponsor, HeyPolo. Protect your loved ones without spying on them. Go to ⁠⁠https://heypolo.com/JOYFUL⁠⁠ and use code JOYFUL for 70% off your first year.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Eps 671: "Is This Normal? Teenage Behavior and What's Underneath It Sep 08, 2026

Show notes

Every parent of a teen has asked some version of this: Is this normal teenage behavior, or is something actually wrong? This week I go under your teen's closed door, attitude, screens, and secrecy. What's driving all of it is belonging, significance, and the private logic your kiddo is writing in real time. I share four questions that tell you where the trouble actually lives, honest signs that it's more than a season, and a three-step practice you can use tonight.

For more show notes and info go to https://www.besproutable.com/podcasts/eps-671-is-this-normal-teenage-behavior/

Protect your loved ones without spying on them. Go to https://heypolo.com/joyful or use code JOYFUL and get 70% off your first year!

To sign up for my Fall Immersion week, go to: www.besproutable.com/immersion

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Eps 670: Knowing Better Isn't Enough Sep 01, 2026

Show notes

I thought I knew everything about co-regulation and the nervous system when my daughter texted me from across the country to say she was dropping out. None of it was available to me. In this solo show I get into what happens when you flip your lid, why knowing better doesn't protect you, and the three things you can practice tonight so your body has the move loaded when the house isn't calm. This one starts with you, my friend. The teen years are REAL. You're going to appreciate this one.

For more info and show notes go to: https://www.besproutable.com/podcasts/eps-670-knowing-better-isnt-enough/

Also, thank you to our current sponsor, HeyPolo. Protect your loved ones without spying on them. Go to ⁠https://heypolo.com/JOYFUL⁠ and use code JOYFUL for 70% off your first year.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Eps 669: Margot Bisnow on Raising Entrepreneurs Aug 25, 2026

Show notes

This week I'm sharing a conversation I had with Margot Bisnow, who interviewed more than 70 families raising wildly self-driven kids. She went looking for a formula and found something more ordinary. We get into how to tell a real passion from checking out, and what parents do in the moments after their kid fails. She also tells the story of biting her tongue when her son left college halfway through. If you're white-knuckling your teen's path, my friend, this one's for you.

Guest bio

Margot Machol Bisnow is the author of Raising an Entrepreneur: How to Help Your Children Achieve Their Dreams, 99 Stories from Families Who Did, written after sitting down with more than 70 families whose kids grew into wildly self-driven adults. Before that she spent 20 years in government, including serving as an FTC commissioner and as staff director of the President's Council of Economic Advisers. Her two grown sons found their own paths: Austin is a musician who founded the band Magic Giant and the folk duo Somewhere in Between, and Elliot founded the Summit conference series for young entrepreneurs and led the purchase and revival of Powder Mountain in Utah. When she isn't talking about parenting, she's traveling or with her family.

For more show notes and info go to: https://www.besproutable.com/podcasts/eps-669-margot-bisnow-on-raising-entrepreneurs/

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