Childhood evokes images of innocence, joy, optimism and wonder. It is a time of security and safety, where you are unconditionally protected, nurtured and loved. Having stability in knowing you are safe and having a secure attachment with your family allows you to form healthy and safe relationships later in life.

But, sadly, the reality of many young people’s experiences and the effect on the rest of their lives is in stark contrast to this description of childhood. Many young people...

Day to day ups and downs are are a normal part of adolescence, making it difficult to distinguish between normal teenage moodiness and more serious mental health challenges. Your teen might not always be able to articulate what they’re going through, and they might not want to talk about it to you, but starting the conversation with them will help to protect their mental well-being.

Adolescence is time of enormous change for young people. Their bodies are changing, their...

Clothes left in the bathroom, lids left off things, cups of tea made back at the beginning of the year, plates that seem to be growing some sort of fungi and glasses that you thought had been broken months ago. Why don't our teenage children care about being tidy?

The unbelievable untidiness of teens is a real bug bear for many parents, myself included. For many parents, it just doesn’t make any sense. Why wouldn’t you want to clear up after yourself and have a well...

When a child experiences neglect or abuse early in their life, it has a significantly detrimental effect on their physical, mental and emotional development. Trauma can be a repeating event, a sudden single event or a pattern of interaction between an abuser and child. Severe neglect is the most common form of trauma and has the biggest impact on brain development.

The brains of children who have been abused and neglected develop differently. Even before they are born, many children in care...

The Mediterranean diet is perfectly suited to improve a woman’s brain health. Women who follow the Mediterranean diet have younger looking brains. But, unlike women who eat a western diet, show no early brain signs of Alzheimer’s disease, and experience fewer and milder menopausal symptoms. I share a simple step-by-step Mediterranean-style diet plan with the right intake of nutrients to help women keep their brain young, reduce menopause symptoms and protect them against...

What happened to the sweet little girl who you’ve loved and nurtured for more than decade? Who is this irrational, untidy and moody young women living in your house, who seems to find everything about you so embarrassing? In this episode, I have a really interesting and wide ranging discussion with parenting columnist, Lorraine Candy, about how to survive the challenges of parenting teenage girls. We cover topics ranging from why teenage girls are so mean to mums to best ways to...

The menopause opens a new chapter in a woman’s life that can take her on a roller coaster ride of foreign feelings lasting easily a decade or more. From hot flushes to low mood to insomnia to forgetfulness, menopause can be deeply distressing for many women. I look at the impact of fluctuating hormones on a woman’s brain health and how to manage well-being during menopause.

I talk to Jonny Benjamin, a mental health campaigner, about his truly extraordinary story and new book, ‘The Book Of Hope’. Jonny was 20 and standing on the edge of Waterloo bridge about to jump. A passer-by, a stranger, noticed his distress and took the time to talk to him. It was a moment of kindness and compassion that change the course of his life. His new book, which brings together 101 different voices on overcoming adversity similarly aims to inspire compassion, courage,...

You probably expected to get some attitude when your child arrived in the teenage years. But the constant eye-rolling, emotional outbursts and “You are so embarrassing” comments may be harder to handle than you imagined. In this episode, I discuss why a teenager’s life is so full of emotions and angst and how to cope with their emotional highs and lows.