Parenting Anxious Teens

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Parenting Anxious Teens

September 11 at 8:00 pm – 9:15 pm

As we head back to school, there’s plenty to feel anxious about – and our teens are feeling it too. Today’s Jewish teens are navigating a dual burden. Not only are they grappling with the joys and challenges of adolescence, but they are also faced with rising antisemitism, political division, and conflicting feelings about what’s happening in Israel and Gaza. How can parents help our teens through anxious times like these?

Join Moving Traditions on September 11 for a conversation with clinical psychologist and parenting expert Dr. Yoni Schwab, Assistant Head of School for the Shefa School. In this conversation facilitated by Rabbi Daniel Brenner we will address questions like: 

  • What strategies can parents use to help their teens cope with everyday stress and anxiety?  
  • How can we build up resilience in our teens to help them overcome the challenges they will inevitably face, as a tactic to manage a healthy level of anxiety?  
  • How can Jewish wisdom and Jewish community support Jewish parents and teens alike through anxious times? 
  • How can parents know if teens need professional support to address clinical anxiety? 

A panel of teens speakers will also share their experiences and advice about how adults can better support Jewish youth who are struggling with stress and anxiety. 

This free Raising Up Teens webinar for parents and educators of Jewish youth will include actionable takeaways and resources to use with the teen in your life. 

Dr. Yoni Schwab (he/him) is a clinical psychologist and Assistant Head of School at The Shefa School in Brooklyn, NY. He has had successful private clinical practices in Riverdale and Scarsdale. Yoni conducts research, consults, and lectures extensively on social-emotional learning, progressive behavior management, and raising the achievement of students with behavioral and learning challenges. He serves on the Expert Panel of Parents.com, the website of Parents Magazine. Yoni holds B.A.’s from both Columbia University and the Jewish Theological Seminary and earned his doctorate in clinical psychology at Rutgers University. He also trained at the NYU Child Study Center in the treatment of ADHD and disruptive behavior and at the Institute for Behavior Therapy. Prior to his career in psychology, Yoni was a management and development consultant to Jewish and Israeli nonprofits at Perry Davis Associates. He lives in Riverdale with his wife and their three children. 

Rabbi Daniel Brenner, Vice President of Education (he/him/his), weaves together ancient wisdom, developmental psychology, social pedagogy, embodied practice, and pop culture to help a diverse network of rabbis, educators, and volunteer leaders who mentor teens. Prior to joining Moving Traditions in 2011, Daniel led educational programs for CLAL-The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, Auburn Theological Seminary, and the Birthright Israel Foundation. Brenner is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin and the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College; he furthered his studies with Rabbi Yitz Greenberg and Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi (z’l), and for the last five years he has been obsessed with studying and teaching shtetl dance. He lives with his beloved, Dr. Lisa Brenner, in Montclair, New Jersey and they are the proud parents of three young adults.