Dr. Drew Pinsky offers parents some important advice.
In a clip from a new episode of the Dads Save America Podcastshared exclusively with PEOPLE, the first love line host urges parents to do whatever they can to help their children develop a healthy relationship with technology. the mirror effect The author also encourages parents to “know the difference between a parenting problem and a mental health problem.”
Noting that “parents get very confused” between the two, Pinsky clarifies, “If a child stays out too late, it’s a parenting issue or if they talk back to you, it’s a parenting issue.”
“But if you find weed in his backpack, now it’s a mental health issue,” he continues. “It’s gotten so bad, they’re using so much that you’re picking it up.”
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“If you spot behaviors that you’re concerned about that are problematic… anything that you have access to, trust me, that’s just the tip of the iceberg.”
“They always hide it. No child is 15 years old and totally communicative,” he shares. “It’s just not the way we’re built.”
Pinsky then shares some things parents can consider if they’re concerned their child is dealing with a “mood disorder.”
“If you see things that feel like a mood disorder (changes in clothing, changes in nail color, changes in the kids they hang out with, sleep-wake cycles are off), this it’s a mental health issue,” he explains. “This is the time to see a doctor about it.”
Although she notes that some families are skeptical, “the treatment really works” if “you get the child involved.”
“That’s really the challenging part of it all, but if you have a child who is involved in some sort of mental health service, just count your blessings,” he says. “It will get better.”
