How to overcome nail biting By Hester (Peppermint Tea.♥) Nail biting is a habit that a lot of people struggle with, from children, to teens, even adults. For some people, nail biting is something that they do when they are stressed. Other people get a feeling of comfort or security from it. Nail biting can cause damage to your fingers and nails. Short-term damage can include sore or bleeding nail beds, hang nails and infections. Although nail biting doesn’t usually cause long-term...

Young carers (caregivers) – Caring for a loved one By Jessie (Palmolive) How to know if you’re a carer for someone with a mental or physical health problem. If you are under the age of 18 and provide care to a family member, you are considered a young caregiver. It may be the case that your parent suffers with an illness that results in you not only caring for them, but also caring for your siblings. You don’t necessarily have to live with the person you care for. Caring for...

Rainbow pancakes By Cheye (Tigerlily.) You may be wondering how to make a regular stack of pancakes more exciting and colourful. A great way to do so is by making them 'rainbow pancakes'. For this you would need at least six colours to complete the rainbow. If you plan on cooking just for yourself and can't eat a whole batch of pancakes, try making mini pancakes. They are approximately three inches in diameter (7.5-8 cm), meaning it doesn't take much batter, and they cook in less than...

How to train a child By Robin (PSY) How many times have you been out in public and witnessed a child throwing a temper tantrum or sobbing uncontrollably because they didn't get what they wanted? How have you felt in those situations? Did you feel the parent or caretaker could have done a better job at handling the situation? What would you have done differently? Working with children can be very challenging, whether you are the parent, sibling, extended family member, a friend, or...

What is queer? By Jen (Arcenciel) The commonly used initialism “LGBT” stands for the four main "types" of sexual orientation and gender identity groups: lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender. However, did you know that the initialism is actually longer than just four letters? One version of the very long initialism is "LGBTQQ2IAP." This stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, two-spirited, intersex, asexual, and pansexual. Since these labels are so...

Seven steps to be self-harm free By Jordan (MacGuffin) Millions of teenagers today struggle with the issue of self-mutilation, or the intentional self-infliction of bodily injury. According to a recent study published in Reuters, one in twelve teenagers are thought to engage in self-harming behaviors, with girls between the ages of 15 and 24 being at the greatest risk. In addition, people who self-harm pose an increased risk of suicide. According to the study, someone who is treated...

The Bathroom Mirror by Craig Barton By Robin (PSY) Many users on TeenHelp have been inspired by Craig Barton's (a.k.a. CanadaCraig) compassionate and encouraging words at some point, whether it was a random visitor message or a response to a thread. Recently, Craig wrote a book called The Bathroom Mirror, which I have had the pleasure of reading and reviewing this month. Some of you may be thinking, "How well could a 49-year-old possibly relate to me?" The answer is,...

Spending quality time with your family By Suvrita (Childish Giggle) There may be many things going on in a teenager's life, such as school, homework, friends, and relationships. In this fast track life, we can sometimes forget our families. Even when we are with them physically we are not always present mentally. Often we are too busy texting people to find out about the events of our family's lives. Why is there a need to spend quality time with our family? Do you...

How to begin dating By Barbara (Unbreakable♥) When you’re looking to date someone there are tons of articles and stories about how to talk to your crush or how to ask someone out. What you don’t see very often is what to do before all of that. Meeting other people When you’re first looking to date you have to meet people in order to see what type of person you’re attracted to or not attracted to. You might care about looks, personality, beliefs, or basically anything that makes a...

Guide to condoms By Traci (Coffee.) Condoms are one of the best ways to protect yourself during sex. Unlike the pill, shot, patch, ring, and other hormonal forms of birth control or not using protection at all, condoms protect you from both pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). When buying condoms, it’s very easy to become overwhelmed with all the different brands, textures, and materials that they can come in. It's also common to wonder which one is right for you....

The Book of Tomorrow by Cecelia Ahern By Manasvi (Artistic Soul) The Book of Tomorrow is a magical modern-age tale. The lead character is a 16-year-old girl named Tamara Goodwin. Being from a rich family, she is used to getting her own way and strongly believes in the policy of "my way or the highway!" Then, suddenly, her father commits suicide because of excessive debts and stress, causing Tamara and her mother to leave Dublin and live with some mysterious relatives (supposedly, her...

Date rape drugs: What are they? By Britt (Le bonheur*) Sometimes rape or sexual assault is assisted by drugs that are slipped into a drink when you’re not looking. Most of the drugs do not have a specific taste, color, or smell. Therefore, it’s very difficult to determine if your drink has been drugged before you take another sip. There are three well-known drugs that are commonly used: Rohypnol, Gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid (GHB), and Ketamine. Rohypnol Rohypnol (roofies) is a...

Conquering your anger By Manasvi (Artistic Soul) Anger: What is it? Anger - a strong and potentially destructive emotion in the human mind. Everyone is aware of this emotion. Anger is a corrosive feeling that can ruin our mental and physical health. It can cause high blood-pressure, violent urges, stress, and lack of peace of mind. People, especially teenagers, can easily become angry. At times, anything and everything can infuriate us. So what do you do during these times? Do you...

Gender identity – Terms to know By Chess (Celestial.) When someone hears the word ‘gender’, most people automatically think of the binary system: male or female. However, more and more people are coming to an understanding about the gender spectrum, which goes beyond the simple ‘male or female’ mentality that many people hold. A lot of people also assume that the terms 'sex' and 'gender' are interchangeable, but sex refers only to the physical characteristics (i.e. reproductive...

Countering your anxiety By Robin (PSY) When faced with an anxiety-provoking situation, two things happen: our body expresses the anxiety, and our mind becomes consumed by anxiety-related thoughts. Most of us have had to speak in public at least once in our lives. This situation can be frightening for most people – in fact, studies have shown that some people are more afraid of public speaking than they are of dying! So what happens when someone is about to speak in public? Their...