One of the things I worry about most with young people is how early we start defining them. Clever, academic, difficult, anxious, high achieving, not reaching potential, good at maths, bad at English, university material, not university material. And then come the results, the grades, the comparisons and the inevitable question of what you are
You Are Good Enough Continue »
This informal CPD article ‘Evidence-Informed Practice in Yoga for Children and Young People’ was provided by Teen Yoga Foundation, a charity promoting the well-being of young people through the practice of yoga in schools & beyond through trainings, events & classes. Interest in yoga as a supportive approach for children and young people’s wellbeing has grown
CPD ARTICLE – Evidence-Informed Practice in Yoga for Children and Young People Continue »
This informal CPD article ‘Yoga for Young People: Considerations for Practice Across Different Settings’ was provided by Teen Yoga Foundation, a charity promoting the well-being of young people through the practice of yoga in schools & beyond through trainings, events & classes. Interest in yoga as a support for children and young people’s wellbeing has grown
Adolescence is a period of enormous neurological, emotional and social change. Young people are navigating identity, relationships, academic pressure, changing bodies and an increasingly digital world, often while their nervous systems are still developing. Yoga therapy offers practical, evidence-informed tools that help young people become more aware of their internal experience, regulate stress, improve resilience
10 Yoga Therapy Tools to Support Teenagers Continue »
By Charlotta Martinus The growing calls to ban smartphones and social media for young people are understandable. Many parents, teachers and professionals are deeply concerned. We see rising anxiety, sleep deprivation, social comparison, cyberbullying and a generation increasingly drawn away from the physical world and into the digital one. The impulse to protect young people
Banning the Phone or Building the Human? Continue »
In 2005, Japanese mathematician and essayist Masahiko Fujiwara published a provocative book, The Dignity of the Nation. His central argument was simple but profound: a nation does not flourish because of wealth, technology, logic or even democracy alone. It flourishes because of the character of its people. A nation possesses dignity when its citizens are
The Dignity We Cannot Measure: Why Young People Need More Than Mental Health Support Continue »
One of the assumptions that concerns me most when discussing the growing number of young people who are not in education, employment or training is the subtle belief that the trend is somehow inevitable. When a problem becomes large enough, visible enough and persistent enough, there is a tendency to begin treating it as a fact of
Can We Reverse a National Trend? History Suggests We Can. Continue »
One of the qualities I most admire in any society is the willingness to change course when new evidence emerges. It is surprisingly difficult for institutions, governments and even individuals to admit that an idea which once appeared progressive may require reconsideration. Yet throughout history, some of the most important advances have occurred when people
Sweden’s U-Turn on Screens and the Courage to Ask What Children Really Need Continue »
Alan Milburn’s recent report on young people who are Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) highlights one of the most pressing social and economic challenges facing the UK today. The rising numbers should concern all of us, not only because of the impact on the life chances of individual young people, but because they
The NEET Crisis Begins Long Before a Young Person Leaves School Continue »
There is a strange contradiction at the heart of modern life. We are more connected than ever, more visible than ever, more able to perform ourselves to the world than any generation in history, and yet so many young people feel unseen in the ways that matter most. Beneath the endless stream of content, branding,
The Quiet Measure of a Life: Dignity, Grace and the Return to Real Connection Continue »
We live in a time that is deeply committed to the reduction of suffering. This is, in many ways, a moral achievement. We have language for mental health, access to support, increasing compassion in systems that once ignored distress. And yet, alongside this, there is a quiet risk: that all suffering becomes something to be
The Intelligence of Suffering Continue »
There is a moment in almost every session when something subtle yet decisive shifts, and it rarely corresponds to the introduction of a new technique or the refinement of a sequence. It happens instead when the young person recognises, often without naming it, that they are in the presence of someone whose attention is not
Attention Is the Medicine: Why Presence, Not Technique, Heals. Continue »
There are moments in this work that do not look like breakthroughs at all. They look small. A shift in posture. A breath that lingers a second longer. A young person choosing, perhaps for the first time, not to leave themselves. And yet these moments build something profound — the return of agency, and with
This isnt compliance – it is agency Continue »
There is a growing silence among our young people. It is not loud, not rebellious in the ways we have learned to recognise rebellion. It does not march or shout. It withdraws, it pauses, it lingers in the in-between. And we have named it NEET — Not in Education, Employment or Training — a label
The Silent Refusal: Young People, NEET, and the Return to Being Continue »
Being a teenager can feel like living in a house that’s being beautifully renovated while you’re still inside it. Neuroscience now confirms what many of us feel: the adolescent brain isn’t “broken”—it’s under construction, exquisitely wired for learning, courage, and connection. 1) A brain built for boldness.During adolescence, the reward system (hello, dopamine) becomes extra
Adolescence & the Brain: A Love Letter to Your Becoming Continue »
by Charlotta Martinus Self-care is often spoken about as something simple: take a bath, go for a walk, pause for a deep breath. Yet for many of us — teachers, parents, young people alike — caring for ourselves can feel surprisingly difficult. Even when we know we need rest, something inside resists. We keep pushing,
The Art of Letting Go: Overcoming Hindrances to Self-Care Through Ishwara Pranidhana Continue »
By Charlotta Martinus In the face of rising violence, fractured communities, and the deep loneliness that haunts so many—especially our young people—what if the real revolution begins not with resistance, but with tenderness? We are living through extraordinary times. The headlines—whether about war, climate breakdown, political unrest, or mental health crises—paint a picture of a
Tenderness as a Revolutionary Act: A Hopeful Vision for the Future Continue »
By Charlotta Martinus There’s a word that’s been making a quiet resurgence among young people: wholesome. On social media, in conversations, and within communities, young people are increasingly drawn to this concept. At first glance, it might seem like a quaint, almost old-fashioned word – something our grandparents might have used to describe a hearty
Wholesome: Rediscovering What It Means to Feel Whole in a Disconnected World5 Continue »
In an increasingly digitized world, young people are turning to artificial intelligence not just as a tool but as a confidant and companion. The rise of AI companions and chatbots that simulate human interaction has opened a new dimension in the way the younger generation processes emotions, handles relationships, and navigates personal challenges. The Tragic
AI as a Trusted Friend: The Echo Chamber of the Digital Age Continue »
