Q
Our 11-year-old son has suddenly taken to telling fanciful, exaggerated stories about himself, usually highlighting his athletic prowess. The stories seem to come out of nowhere, and he tells them only to me — never to his father. Could this be a sign that he’s looking for more attention from Mom?
Q
My 9-year-old son has trouble comprehending the material he’s being taught at school. His teachers say he’s not focused and loses concentration easily. We’ve tested his vision and hearing, and also did an auditory-processing test; everything has come back fine. I feel helpless. Do you have any advice?
Q
Our nine-year-old daughter has developed a habit of storing food in her backpack. We’ve also found several bagels in her dresser. We’ve explained why it’s wrong to waste food and said that she should return uneaten items to the fridge, to no avail. She is otherwise a very kind, thoughtful child who helps choose her lunch each morning.
Q
My 2½-year-old recently heard a new song that he insisted we dance to over and over again. A few days later, I tried to show my parents how much he loves it, but when I turned it on, he burst into tears and insisted I turn the song off. What happened?
Q
We’re accustomed to our seven-year-old daughter’s difficulty accepting praise, but her recent reaction was the worst yet. When we told her how proud we were when she was chosen to read the morning announcements at school, she got very angry, yelled at us to stop talking about it and began to cry. My husband says these “moments” are normal. Is he right?
Q
My husband shows no interest or initiative in helping with our newborn, and it’s making me really sad and upset. I’ve even had suicidal thoughts because of this.
Q
My preteen daughter was the victim of a sexual assault. No sex took place, but the man touched her. I am happy to say that the man who did this was arrested and will be tried. But how do I go about talking to her about this? Social workers and psychiatrists are not available in the isolated community where we live.
Q
Although we stress the importance of honesty, our 12-year-old daughter is continually lying — even about the most trivial of transgressions, like taking her brother’s video game on a sleepover without asking first. When she’s caught in a lie, her first line of defence is to cover it up with another lie.
Q
My six-year-old son recently “broke up” with his best friend. He’s taking the separation quite hard. How can I help him through this?