Something a little bit different on the podcast today - we ARE going to talk about teenagers, and how they're affected by toxic relationships when things go wrong for their parents. But FIRST we talk about something a lot of us midlife mums (and dads) might relate to - FEELING BLAH. That's the title of my guest's book. Parenting author Tanith Carey writes a lot about the teenage brain. She had a tough time when her parents divorced, but it was midlife when she noticed that despite having a happy life on paper, she wasn't really feeling it. She researched this feeling that wasn't depression, but wasn't happiness either, and discovered a little used word for it - ANHEDONIA. Feeling Blah? Why anhedonia has left you joyless, and how to recapture life's highs* is an exploration of what causes the lacklustre feeling so many of us go through at times. She explains the science behind it, and - better still - tells us what to do to move beyond it and feel excited for life again. *Affiliate link She also talks me through her parents' divorce, and the toxic atmosphere she lived in before they separated. We discuss the impact that had on her emotional development, and how she developed coping strategies that affected how she would feel about life decades later. If you've ever found yourself overthinking your feelings, this is the conversation for you. Who is Tanith Carey? Tanith Carey is an author who writes books which use the latest research to offer a lucid analysis of the most pressing challenges for today’s parents. Her eleven books have been translated into 25 languages. She has written on the impact of competitive parenting on children and parents, plus friendship issues, and is one of the UK media’s leading commentators on girls’ well-being. As an award-winning journalist, Tanith also writes on psychology, social trends, childhood, adolescence and family relationships for a wide range of newspapers and magazines around the world including The Daily Telegraph, The Times, The Guardian and Daily Mail. Follow Tanith on Twitter and Instagram. More teenage parenting from Helen Wills: Helen wills is a teen mental health podcaster and blogger at Actually Mummy, a resource for midlife parents of teens. Thank you for listening! Subscribe to the Teenage Kicks podcast to hear new episodes. If you have a suggestion for the podcast please email [email protected]. There are already stories from fabulous guests about difficult things that happened to them as teenagers - including losing a parent, becoming a young carer, and being hospitalised with mental health problems - and how they overcame things to move on with their lives. You can find more from Helen Wills on parenting teenagers on Instagram and Twitter @iamhelenwills. For information on your data privacy please visit Podcast.co. Please note that Helen Wills is not a medical expert, and nothing in the podcast should be taken as medical advice. If you're worried about yourself or a teenager, please seek support from a medical professional. Podcast produced by James Ede at Be Heard production.