Episode 73: Dr. Janet Sasson Edgette
*This episode is for mental health professionals.
*Information shared on this podcast is for informational and educational purposes only.
In this episode of What Your Therapist is Reading, Jessica Fowler discusses Therapeutic Conversations with Adolescents alongside Dr. Janet Edgette. Dr. Edgette is an experienced psychologist and author. She shares insights from her new book 'Therapeutic Conversations with Adolescents: Helping Teens in Therapy Thrive in an Ultra-Competitive, Screen-Saturated World,' highlighting effective ways to engage with teens in therapy by being authentic, respectful, and avoiding a question-based approach. She emphasizes the importance of talking 'with' teens rather than 'at' them, addressing real issues, and fostering genuine communication. The episode also delves into how cultural expectations about adolescence often lead to misunderstandings and provides practical advice for therapists and parents on how to build stronger connections with teenagers.
Highlights
Therapeutic Conversations with Adolescents
Engaging Teens in Therapy
Addressing Disrespect in Therapy
Handling Noncompliance
Building Credibility with Teens
Respecting Client Autonomy
Challenging Teen Stereotypes
Effective Parent-Teen Communication
Modern Approach to Teen Therapy
About the author:
Janet Sasson Edgette, Psy.D., M.P.H. is a psychologist, author, workshop leader, and
speaker from the Philadelphia area, working with teenagers and consulting to their
parents for over thirty five years in her Philadelphia-based private practice. She is the
author of seven books, her most recent one being Therapeutic Conversations with
Adolescents: Helping Teens in Therapy Thrive in an Ultra-Competitive and Screen-
Saturated World. Others include Adolescent Therapy That Works: Helping Kids Who
Never Asked for Help in the First Place and Stop Negotiating With Your Teen:
Strategies for Parenting Your Angry, Manipulative, Moody or Depressed Adolescent.
For much of her career, Janet has focused on offering therapy services to young people
that they actually value and respect, and want to participate in, eliminating the
miserable and degrading tug of war and other power struggles many clinicians endure
when working with this population. She has been teaching her approach, Modern Teen
Therapy for more than three decades to audiences through the US and Canada as well
as to other teen therapists in her online coaching/mentorship program.
Janet received her doctorate in clinical psychology from Hahnemann University in Philadelphia, PA and a masters in public health from the University of Oklahoma. She is
a native New Yorker, the mother of three young men, an avid equestrian (show
jumping), and a lover of all dogs, especially pit bulls and Bullmastiffs.