Single Parenting Reset Show: For Solo Parents of Tweens and Teens — Manage Behavior Problems, Reduce Screen Time & Improve Communication

Is screen time the battle that keeps showing up in your home? Maybe your teen is on their phone late at night. Maybe gaming turns into an argument every time you ask them to stop. Maybe social media, YouTube, texting, or endless scrolling have started to affect sleep, mood, homework, motivation, or connection. And if you are a single parent, this can feel even more exhausting because you may be th...

Is screen time already becoming a daily battle in your home? If your 10-, 11-, or 12-year-old argues every time screens end, asks constantly for more time, sneaks devices, or says “everyone else gets to,” you are not alone. The tween years are a key window for building healthy screen habits before the teen years bring more complicated challenges like smartphones, social media, group chats, gaming,...

If your child has ADHD or ADHD-like symptoms, you may feel like you are constantly managing meltdowns, screen battles, irritability, impulsivity, emotional explosions, or big reactions that seem to come out of nowhere. But what if your child’s behavior is not only a discipline issue? What if their behavior is also communication? In this episode of the Single Parenting Reset Show, Tess Connolly, LC...

Single mom burnout is real, especially when you are raising tweens and teens through behavior problems, screen time battles, emotional ups and downs, curfews, money stress, and hard conversations that you may not feel ready to have. When you are parenting alone, every decision can feel heavier. Every boundary can feel like a battle. And when your teen pushes back, it can be easy to wonder, “Am I d...

If your teen's behavior has been pushing every button lately—attitude, eye rolling, lying, shutting down, refusing to help, or constant battles over screens—you are not alone. Many parents start to wonder if they've lost control, lost connection, or lost influence altogether. When these struggles happen day after day, it's easy to take them personally and feel exhausted. This episode offers a diff...

Does every conversation with your teen seem to turn into an argument? You ask about homework, and they snap back. You remind them about a chore, and they roll their eyes. You bring up the phone, the attitude, the curfew, or the messy room — and suddenly you are in another exhausting back-and-forth. For single parents, this can feel especially draining because there often is not another adult there...

Summer can make screen time harder for families. There is less school structure. There is more downtime. Kids may be home more. Parents may be working. And screens can quickly become the default activity. In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, talks about how to create screen time rules for kids in summer without turning the whole season into a power struggle. This episode is for parents of kids, t...

Does your teen’s attitude instantly pull you into a fight? The eye rolls. The sarcasm. The “whatever.” The rude tone. The way one comment can shift the whole mood in your home. If you are parenting a tween or teen, teen attitude problems can feel exhausting, disrespectful, and deeply personal. In this episode of The Single Parenting Reset Show, Tess Connolly, LCSW, shares three practical parenting...

Your teen misses curfew. You take away the phone. They shrug. Your tween talks back. You ground them. They say, “Whatever.” You try to follow through, but nothing changes. If consequences have stopped working with your teen, you are not alone—and it does not mean you are a bad parent. In this episode of The Single Parenting Reset Show , Tess Connolly, LCSW, talks about why traditional consequences...

Do you feel like you repeat yourself all day long with your teenager? In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW shares practical parenting scripts that help reduce power struggles and improve communication with tweens and teens. You’ll learn: Why teens stop listening The exact words that lower resistance How to stop repeating yourself Why nervous system regulation matters in parenting Real examples for...

Do you ever feel stuck between being the "too soft" parent who gets walked all over and the "strict" one who yells and regrets it later? Many single parents find themselves swinging between two extremes—permissive parenting that lacks boundaries and authoritarian parenting that shuts kids down. But what if there were a third way that builds trust, reduces screen-time struggles, and creates more pe...

If your teen explodes over homework, screens, chores, tone of voice, or being told no, it can feel like you are living with constant tension. Teen anger issues are one of the most common concerns parents bring into coaching. In this episode, Tess explains why teen anger is often a signal, not the real problem. You’ll learn what is happening in the teen brain, why lectures usually fail during emoti...

Are screen time conversations turning into constant battles in your home? In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, talks about digital boundaries for kids and teens — and why clear, calm boundaries can reduce fighting and protect what matters most. You’ll learn how to create digital boundaries around sleep, school, safety, and connection, while still maintaining trust and relationship with your tween...

Does your teen seem unable to put the phone down, even when they know they should? In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, explains why phone limits matter, but why limits alone are often not enough to change the pattern. If you have tried taking the phone away and still end up in the same screen time battle, this episode will help you understand what may be happening underneath. You’ll learn how to...

Are your screen time rules constantly turning into arguments, reminders, threats, or power struggles? In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, explains why many screen time family rules fail and how to create rules that are clear, realistic, and easier for tweens and teens to follow. You’ll learn how to move away from vague rules like “get off your phone” and toward practical agreements that protect...

Is your teen constantly on their phone, gaming late at night, scrolling endlessly, or melting down when you ask them to get off a screen? In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, talks about digital addiction in teens in a practical and non-shaming way. You’ll learn why screens feel so hard for tweens and teens to stop using, what signs may show that screen time is out of balance, and how to respond...

Have you ever wondered what parent coaching actually is? Maybe you have heard the term but are not sure whether it is therapy, parenting advice, family coaching, or something else entirely. In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, explains parent coaching in clear, simple language and shares how it can help families move out of repeated conflict and into better communication, stronger boundaries, and...

Does your teen shut down, give one-word answers, snap back, or avoid hard conversations altogether? If so, the issue may not be that your teen does not care. They may not yet have the skills to communicate when they feel overwhelmed, judged, anxious, embarrassed, or defensive. In this episode, Tess Connolly, LCSW, explores teen communication coaching and why communication is one of the most import...

Teen mental health struggles are rising fast — and many parents are seeing more anxiety, emotional shutdown, irritability, hopelessness, and overwhelm in their teens than ever before. According to the CDC’s 2024 Youth Risk Behavior Survey using 2023 teen data: Nearly 40% of teens reported persistent sadness or hopelessness 20% seriously considered suicide Nearly 1 in 10 reported attempting suicide...

Is your teen or preteen having big emotional reactions, shutting down, snapping back, or melting down over what seems like a small issue? In this episode of The Single Parenting Reset Show, Tess Connolly, LCSW, talks with Dr. Rosina McAlpine, work and family wellbeing expert from Win Win Parenting, about how parents can help tweens and teens build emotional intelligence and learn to manage their e...

Is your teen talking back… rolling their eyes… or saying things that feel completely disrespectful? You’re not alone—and more importantly, you’re not doing anything wrong. Teen attitude problems are one of the most common (and most triggering) challenges for parents of tweens and teens. But how you respond in those moments can either escalate the situation… or completely shift it. In this episode,...

If teen screen time is becoming a daily battle in your home… and your screen time limits for teens don’t seem to be working… you are not alone. You take the phone away. You set rules. You try to stay consistent. And still… it turns into arguments, eye rolls, or sneaky behavior. The truth is… teen screen time is not just about the phone. It’s about what the phone is replacing. Sleep. Homework. Resp...

Does disciplining your teenager leave you feeling drained, angry, or like nothing is working? If every boundary turns into an argument, every consequence becomes a negotiation, and every hard moment ends in distance, this episode is for you. In this solo episode, Tess breaks down how to discipline teenagers in a way that teaches responsibility without damaging the relationship. She explains why th...

Has trust been strained between you and your teen or tween? Maybe there has been conflict. Maybe too many arguments. Maybe lying, secrecy, attitude, shutdown, or just that painful feeling of disconnection. If you have been wondering how to rebuild trust with your teen without forcing conversations or making things worse, this episode is for you. In this episode of The Single Parent Reset Show , I’...

Is communication at home feeling tense, shut down, or full of conflict with your tween or teen? If you keep walking away from conversations thinking, “Why does everything turn into an argument?” this episode is for you. In this episode of The Single Parenting Reset Show , Tess Connolly, LCSW, breaks down four communication shifts that help parents talk with tweens and teens in a way that lowers de...