Writing with a panel of 30 teenagers, Lauren Forcella, a mother of four and founder of Teens-Matter, brings you directly into the world of teens. Her column appears every Sunday in Lifestyles.
Straight Talk for Teens
Emo trend promotes depression as chic
Comments | RecommendEditor's note: Emo stands for "emotional." Formerly a genre of music, emo is now a social movement of mostly white, affluent, suburban teens who champion melancholy, depression, cutting and suicidal thoughts. Their fashion is skinny black pants and black...
My mom plans to marry her girlfriend
Comments | RecommendDear Straight Talk: I'm in eighth grade, and I cannot go to school and face my friends. The other night, I was supposed to be at my dad's, but I got dropped off at my mother's unexpectedly, and now I know that my mom and her best friend are lesbians....
Pop the STD question early
Comments | RecommendDear Straight Talk: I'm 16, and I have a question. How do you ask a potential partner how many partners she's had and whether she has a sexually transmitted disease? I am going out with this girl, and I can't figure out how, or when, to ask the question....
My dad smokes pot in the bathroom
Comments | RecommendDear Straight Talk: My mom and dad got in a fight a few days ago, and my mom ended it with, "Just run upstairs and smoke your pot." Now I realize I can hear my dad smoking it in the bathroom. He does it all the time. It is really bothering me, and I don't...
Feeling awkward? It’s a sure sign of love
Comments | RecommendDear Straight Talk: I'm 17 and it's embarrassing, but I've never had a boyfriend, kissed a guy or been on a date. I'm just not a flirty girl; I can't stand girls who act all giddy around guys. I know I'm not ugly, but I have no self-confidence and no...
