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.
Freedom Politics: Goodbye, Congress
Straight Talk TNT: Tweens 'n Twenties
- Straight Talk Teens 'n Twenties: Girl wants to spend break with boyfriend
- Dear Straight Talk: I am in a long-distance relationship and see my boyfriend every couple of weeks if I'm lucky. February break is coming up, and I want to stay at his house. We're both 15 with crazy hormones, but I still want to visit him, even if ... Full story
- Young wife agonizes about husband's cheating
- Dear Straight Talk: I'm 21. My husband is 19. He has cheated on me several times, once since we've been married, and I'm scared he is doing it again. It's always with the same girl, an ex-girlfriend who lives out of town. When we found out I was pre... Full story
- Son won't go to sleep before midnight
- Dear Straight Talk: I have an ordinary question compared to some of the topics you cover. How do you get a teenager (age 16) to go to sleep before midnight — so that he wakes up in the morning acting like a human being? I'm afraid I can't stay ... Full story
- Son's Internet romance worries Dad
- Dear Straight Talk: My oldest, age 15, is in a long-term, long-distance relationship with "the one." He is constantly asking to visit her. I have concerns about the level of supervision there (every interaction has involved questionable decisions by ... Full story
- On the first day of Christmas, my true love stole for me
- Dear Straight Talk: I am writing about my friend. She has a problem with shoplifting, maybe even an addiction. I would like to help her stop before she gets caught because she is over 18 and it will result in a criminal record. I have known her for ... Full story
- Mother asks: Are my curfew, dating rules too strict?
- Dear Straight Talk: My 17-year-old daughter has a serious, almost-18-year-old boyfriend. She says I'm too restrictive. I feel a midnight curfew is reasonable, and she may not go to his home since I don't know if an adult will be there. Plus, her boyf... Full story
- Young people envision a better world
- Dear Readers: Each new year, I ask the panelists: What bugs you most about the world? How would you make the world better? Last week's "better world" column covered concerns about how digital networking has diminished face-to-face interactions, depth... Full story
- Young people lament downside of digital age
- Dear Readers: What bugs you most about the world? How would you make the world better? Every winter, I pose these questions to the panel. This year, technology took a bruising. Real relationships, thinking deeply, embracing boredom and lamenting the... Full story
- The best party favors are to stay sober, keep each other safe
- Dear Straight Talk: I attend high school parties but don't usually drink or use drugs. Recently, a girl chugged vodka. Everyone was drinking except me, so nobody thought much of it. After 10 minutes, her limbs went limp and she couldn't walk, yet she... Full story
- Girl raped while passed out from drinking
- Dear Straight Talk: I am helping a friend in my dorm through a terrible experience. She passed out from drinking at a party and was put in a bedroom to sleep it off. She woke up in pain with somebody on top of her. It was like a bad dream that ended ... Full story
