Keyword: adolescence

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Why Teenagers Take Risks July 1, 2014

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Giullian Gioiello, Lisa Arnone
Category: Anxiety & Fear, Identity & The Self

Adolescent risk-taking is rooted in brain biology: the amygdala and reward circuits mature before the prefrontal cortex, leaving teenagers flooded with sensation-seeking drive and no brake. Armand DiMele, co-host Giullian Gioiello, and Lisa Arnone, LCSW trace this from evolutionary necessity through modern dangers like cutting, substance use, and viral stunts.

Sexual Obsession as Anxiety November 9, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Booker Irvin, Kent Robertshaw, Linda Vanella
Category: Addiction & Compulsion, Anxiety & Fear

Sexual obsession reframed not as moral failure but as an anxiety disorder seeking relief through repetitive thought and behavior. Armand DiMele and Linda Vanella, LCSW-R discuss the cycle with Dr. Kent Robertshaw, MD, Psychiatrist, who explains the roles of testosterone, the nucleus accumbens, and serotonin-based medications in treatment.

The Positive Side of Rebellion September 21, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Alex, Lauren Sykes, Linda Vanella, Ramey
Category: Family & Parenting, Personal Growth & Change

Rebellion is not a problem to suppress but a developmental skill to celebrate. Armand DiMele argues that children who push back against parents are building the same muscle they need to resist dominating peers and dangerous strangers. Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, shares how raising four children taught her to read defiance as a bid for independence, and callers add vivid stories of rebellion, loss, and trust.

Growing Up in the 20-Something Generation August 25, 2010

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Lauren Sykes, Linda Vanella
Category: Identity & The Self, Personal Growth & Change

Why are so many young adults delaying marriage, careers, and commitment well into their 20s and beyond? Armand DiMele and Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, dig into shifting milestones, the rise of the “hipster” lifestyle, political disillusionment, and whether prolonged adolescence reflects freedom, avoidance, or something in between.

Growing Up With the Internet September 1, 2009

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Claire Fuhrer, Giullian Gioiello, Stephanie D'Ambra
Category: Identity & The Self, Society, Culture & Current Events

Is constant digital connectivity replacing real human contact? Armand DiMele sits down with a 17-year-old student, his tech-savvy cousin Giullian Gioiello, and therapist Stephanie D’Ambra, LCSW to examine how Facebook, texting, and smartphones are reshaping how young people relate, feel lonely, and find (or lose) silence.

Body Piercing and Reclaiming the Self with Stephanie Roth June 18, 2008

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Stephanie Roth
Category: Identity & The Self, Trauma & Healing

Body piercing is not about fashion but about reclaiming parts of yourself that were taken away in childhood. Armand DiMele and Stephanie Roth-Goldberg, LCSW, argue that each piercing site maps onto a specific loss: ears to being heard, lips to voice, eyes to perception, genitals to sexual autonomy, and the navel to maternal connection.

Rampage Killings and the Adolescent Male Mind April 25, 2007

Category: Society, Culture & Current Events, The Mind & Neuroscience

The Virginia Tech massacre prompts Armand DiMele and co-host Dr. Kent Robert Shaw to ask why rampage killers are almost exclusively male. They trace the pattern through testosterone surges, schizoid and paranoid personality profiles, failures of the mental health system, and a culture that worships superstars while ignoring the quietly invisible.

Growing Up Without Rules with Barbara Jessen March 27, 2007

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Barbara Jessen, Brian Jefferson, Stephanie D'Ambra
Category: Family & Parenting, Personal Growth & Change

Rules are love, argues Armand DiMele in this conversation with Barbara Jessen, executive director of a group home for at-risk teenage girls in Indiana. Together with Stephanie D’Ambra, LCSW, they examine what chaotic childhoods cost kids, how brain development shapes decision-making, and why structure feels foreign to children who never had it.

The Art of Feeling at Home September 28, 2006

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Emotions & Inner Life, Family & Parenting

What actually makes people feel welcome and at home? Armand DiMele offers practical and psychological advice on greeting rituals, shared meals, clutter as avoidance, adolescent rebellion, and why holding grudges poisons family life. A caller’s story about an inappropriate uncle opens into a broader conversation about absent fathers and displaced anger.

The Father Child Bond with Dr. Kent Robertshaw August 9, 2006

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Kent Robertshaw
Category: Family & Parenting, Identity & The Self

Fathers are the least understood figures in child development, and Armand DiMele and Dr. Kent Robertshaw, MD, Psychiatrist, dig into why. They trace how absent or emotionally unavailable dads shape children’s self-esteem, how puberty fractures father-daughter bonds, and why men are socialized to convert sadness into anger rather than seek help.