Navigating Teen Mental Health: An Expert's Guide for Parents

Praise for Navigating Teen Mental Health

“This book is a must-read for parents who are seeking practical, step-by-step guidance as they navigate the uncertainties of their child’s mental health concerns through the difficult teenage years. To those who lament that parenting does not come with a manual, here is your manual.”— Kimberly Adams, Ph.D.

“In the middle of this teen mental health crisis, Navigating Teen Mental Health is an invaluable resource. This easy-to-read book will empower parents to feel like there are actionable and effective steps they can take to help their child suffer less.”—Sarah Berger, Ph.D., Licensed Clinical Psychologist

“This book does a great job of providing practical tips, strategies, and personalized stories on how to become more confident and navigate parenting through the teenage years. Dr. Hall Brown reassures us that it does get better.”—Deserea Russell, MPH, Clinical Project Manager and parent of two

Revised and Updated for 2025!

In the best of times, the teen years are challenging for youth and their parents. It’s a period marked by physiological changes, cultural milestones, significant cognitive development, and fluctuations in mood. And now, we are in the midst of a teen mental health crisis. The disruption to school and home life caused by the pandemic over the last two years has accelerated the increasingly high rates of mental illness experienced by teens.

What’s a parent to do? To answer parents’ toughest questions, child & adolescent clinical psychologist Dr. Tyish Hall Brown has written this first-of-its-kind book, providing practical step-by-step guidance for parents to best support their teens’ mental health and wellness. Dr. Hall Brown provides concrete answers to questions such as “what is normal?” “when is it time to seek help?” “how do I know if a therapist is a good fit?” “how do I get on the same page as my co-parent?” and “how do I know if things are getting better?”

New material included in this revised and updated edition includes:

• Handling Big Emotions and Learning Self-Regulation
• Leaning into Telehealth Options
• What to Do if Your Teen Doesn’t Seem to Get Better
• What to Do if Your Teen Doesn’t Want to Give Up Therapy
• More Sample Scripts, Examples, Questions, and Checklists

From deciding whether to seek help to knowing when your teen has improved enough to terminate therapy, Navigating Teen Mental Health empowers parents to actively support their teen through the seemingly intimidating and frustrating process of acquiring mental health services.

Dr. Tyish Hall Brown is a licensed Clinical Psychologist and the Director of Behavioral Sleep Medicine within the Division of Pulmonary & Sleep Medicine at Children’s National Hospital.

Before moving to Children’s National, Dr. Hall Brown was a tenured Associate Professor and served as the Director of the School Based Behavioral Health Program at Howard University. The HU School-Based Behavioral Health Program was funded by the DC Department of Behavioral Health and strived to support the mental health of youth and their families by seamlessly integrating mental health services into the academic environment. With regard to clinical work, Dr. Hall Brown provided clinical services to children and adolescents using cognitive behavioral techniques to treat conditions such as sleep disorders, anxiety disorders, depression, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Dr. Hall Brown holds a Bachelor’s degree from Duke University, a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from University of Maryland, College Park, a Master’s degree in Clinical Investigation from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and a doctorate in Clinical Psychology from the University of Maryland, College Park.