RSS
Home
Are we Raising A Nation of Wimps?
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
Hara Estroff Marano, the author of A Nation of Wimps and the Editor at Large for Psychology Today Magazine has written a wonderful book asking all parents the most important question, "Are our children as resilient as we think?"
I spoke with Hara on Monday and she shared some insightful points about the state of mental health on college campuses across the country.
For any parent who has ever wondered, " Am I doing too much for my child?" Hara answers in her book ,"Maybe." The book began as an article written in 2001 newsletter to identify the mental health crisis on college campuses across the country. Hara interviewed over 100 college campus psychologists, counselors and psychiatrists--asking what is the most common emotional issues among college students today. The answer was stress. An overwhelming number of students had the inability to handle and manage stress. They were not permitted to cope with their own life issues. Instead, these students needed their parents to bail them out. She said that parents today "exhibit a high level of distrust."
Through her research she found that our children were not resilient and were not allowed to cope and solve their own life issues. As a result, "these college students never gained self-mastery, or how to figure out the solutions to their own issues", says Marano.
This book is a compelling must-read for any parent who wants to or has orchestrated their child's life.
Here is a list of articles written by Hara Estroff Marano:
1. Crisis on campus
http://www.nationofwimps.com/crisis-on-the-campus.php
2. Up against the Ivy Wall
http://www.nationofwimps.com/up-against-the-ivy-wall.php
P.S. I give this book 5 stars. Parents today shelter children more than ever. Children are driven everywhere they go and are using cell phones as walkie talkies to report each step. While I will agree that times have changed to reflect more information on sexual predators, teen sex and violence, I still think that all children can benefit from the ability to problem solve. Problem solving is learned best when you have the opportunity to solve a problem yourself. Weigh In.
Live fully,
Mia
