TPP 456: Maggie Dent on How to Parent, Love & Support Today’s Teens

TILT Parenting: Strategies, Insights, and Connection for Parents Raising Neurodivergent Children

Debbie Reber

Education, Parenting, Kids & Family

4.8 • 983 Ratings

🗓️ 29 July 2025

⏱️ 45 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this powerful conversation, I’m joined by beloved Australian parenting expert and author Maggie Dent to explore what it really takes to raise resilient, emotionally healthy teens in today’s ever-changing world. Drawing on her experiences as a high school teacher, mother of four boys, and trusted voice in the parenting space, Maggie shares practical, compassionate guidance for navigating adolescence with insight, humor, and heart. We dive into the realities of the teenage brain, how the digital age is reshaping childhood, and why curiosity, connection, and unconditional love are more important than ever in building strong, supportive relationships with our kids. About Maggie Dent Commonly known as the ‘queen of common sense’, Maggie Dent has become one of Australia’s favourite parenting authors, educators and podcasters. She has a particular interest in the early years, adolescence and resilience, and is an undisputed ‘boy champion’. Maggie’s experience includes teaching, counselling, and working in palliative care/funeral services and suicide prevention. Maggie is an advocate for the healthy, common-sense raising of children in order to strengthen families and communities. She is a passionate, positive voice for children of all ages. Maggie is the host of The Good Enough Dad podcast and hosted six seasons of the award-winning ABC podcast, Parental As Anything. In 2025, she appears in the genre-bending ABC TV series about the challenges of parenting modern tweens/teens, The Role of a Lifetime. She is the author of 10 major books, plus several other e-books and a prolific creator of resources for parents, adolescents, teachers, early childhood educators and others who are interested in quietly improving their lives. Her books include the 2024 release Help Me Help My Teen: supporting our teens through tough times, Girlhood: Raising our little girls to be healthy, happy and heard, Parental As Anything (a book based on her podcast released in 2021), and her bestselling boys’ books From Boys to Men and Mothering Our Boys. Maggie is the proud mother of four wonderful sons, and an enthusiastic and grateful grandmother. She lives in the South Coast region of NSW with her good bloke Steve Mountain and their dear little dog, Mr Hugo Walter Dent. Things you'll learn from this episode Why the changing world requires parents to adapt, even though the core needs of children remain the same How the teenage brain’s pruning and remodeling process impacts memory, emotional regulation, and impulse control Why understanding gender-based differences in brain development can help parents better support behavior and learning How compassion, curiosity, and unconditional love create a secure foundation for teens during turbulent developmental stages Why being a steady “lighthouse” presence helps teens feel safe while learning to make their own choices How approaching tough conversations with calm curiosity opens the door to deeper trust and connection Resources mentioned Maggie Dent’s website Maggie Dent’s YouTube Channel Help Me Help My Teen: Supporting Our Teens Through Tough Times by Maggie Dent The Good Enough Dad Podcast Parental As Anything Podcast From Boys to Men: Guiding Our Boys to Grow into Happy, Healthy Men by Maggie Dent Mothering Our Boys: A Guide for Mums of Boys by Maggie Dent Girlhood: Raising Our Little Girls to Be Healthy, Happy and Heard by Maggie Dent Parental As Anything: A Common-Sense Guide to Raising Happy, Healthy Kids from Toddlers to Tweens by Maggie Dent No Matter What posters on Maggie’s website Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Are you feeling anxious about all the transitions this season is bringing new routines, new schools, new teachers?
0:05.8	You are not alone. And as you no doubt already, no, transitions can be especially rough for our neurodivergent kids.
0:12.6	That's why this August in the differently wired club, we will be up-leveling our strategies and tools for helping our kids navigate transitions.
0:20.2	And we'll do it together through
0:21.4	coaching calls and office hours with me and the other awesome parent coaches in the community,
0:26.1	special guests, and so many resources to support you. And if parent coaching is what you're after,
0:31.1	there's always a call that can work for your schedule. We've got your back so you can show up for
0:35.7	your kids and your family and yourself. Get all the details at tiltparenting.com slash club. That's tiltparenting.com slash club.
0:45.9	Welcome to full tilt parenting, formerly known as tilt parenting, a podcast for parents, caregivers, educators, therapists, really anyone raising, supporting,
0:55.3	or loving neurodivergent kids. In today's conversation, I'm joined by beloved Australian
1:00.3	parenting expert and author Maggie Dent. She's often called the Queen of Common Sense.
1:05.9	And she joins me to explore what it really takes to raise resilient, emotionally healthy teens
1:10.8	in today's
1:11.5	ever-changing world. Mackie has an extensive background in teaching and counseling and adolescent
1:16.8	development, and she blends that with her warmth, her humor, and her grounded wisdom.
1:22.0	So in this conversation, we're going to dive into the realities of the teenage brain, how the
1:27.2	digital age is reshaping
1:28.8	childhood, and why curiosity, connection, and unconditional love are more important than ever
1:34.1	in building strong, supportive relationships with our kids.
1:37.6	Maggie is also the host of the Good Enough Dad podcast and author of the book, Help Me, Help My
1:42.4	Teen, which is just now available in the U.S., along
1:45.6	with nine other major books and so many other resources for parents and educators and anyone
	...

Transcript will be available on the free plan in 10 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Debbie Reber, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Debbie Reber and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.