Teens' Stress Explained: Healthy vs. Unhealthy Stress (and how parents can help)

In this episode of The Parenting Pair Podcast, Dr. Suzanne Allen and Dr. Annalise Caron unpack how parents and teens experience stress—both healthy and unhealthy—offering practical insights and actionable advice for families who want to build resilience and balance at home. Together, they explore: How the way we think about stress shapes how we manage it Why some stress is healthy and helps kids grow When stress tips into overload and becomes unhealthy The warning signs of burnout in teens The role of comparison and perfectionism in fueling stress Practical tools to prioritise and scale back commitments How parents can model healthy stress management Chapters: 00:00 – Back-to-school stress for parents and teens 02:14 – The way we think about stress shapes how we manage it 03:41 – Why some stress is healthy and helps kids grow 04:50 – Real-life examples of healthy stress in teens and tweens 06:40 – How parents can reframe stress for their kids 08:30 – Temporary healthy stress vs. unhealthy stress 10:05 – Unhealthy stress and achievement overload 11:33 – Comparison, Perfectionism and Unhealthy Stress 15:30 – Warning signs of unhealthy stress: sleep, irritability, burnout 18:20 – Tool: The 24-hour reality check for overloaded schedules 21:00 – Deciding what to scale back and saying no 23:06 – Shifting the community narrative and supporting kids’ well-being 25:50 – Parents modeling healthy stress management If you’ve ever worried about your teen being overbooked, anxious, or struggling to keep up with unrealistic expectations, this episode will give you tools to reframe stress, set healthy boundaries, and support your teen’s well-being. 🎧 Listen now and discover how to raise more resilient, confident, and balanced teens. 👉 Don’t forget to subscribe and follow us for more parenting tips, expert insights, and real talk about raising teens in today’s world. The Parenting Pair podcast is designed for informational and educational purposes only. Do not rely on the information presented in this podcast as a substitute or replacement for professional -- psychological or medical -- advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you have concerns about you or a family member's well being, please contact a licensed mental health professional or physician _______________________________________________________________________________________________