Valerie Grison Blog

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As parents, it is very hard to witness your teen suffer. Your reflex is either to build a shield around them or give them the solution. Think twice before letting your instinct take over. Wouldn’t it be better for your teenager to learn by himself/herself how to cope with life’s adversities? It is very difficult […]

September was a special month for Give Us The Floor. It’s our first anniversary. And we launched the first “semester themes“, the first product of our very special process for letting teenagers decide for themselves what they need: the teens voted to focus on two broad themes. The results are Health (Mental & Physical) and […]

  Are you aware of the power of “Not Yet”? I am afraid I wasn’t. Not enough, at least. A few days ago I watched a talk called “The Power of Yet” by Carol Dweck. It was a revelation to me. As parents, as educators, we need to be aware of the power of “Not Yet” […]

Every parent has had the frustrating experience of admonishing their teenager and getting the impression that, somehow, the lines of communication are broken. You know, they look at you, they don’t misbehave, but you suspect that what you say is not reaching their brains. Is it that they don’t care? Are they being absolutely rebellious? […]

My decision to recover did not come lightly, nor did I completely commit myself to it when I chose to do so. To even begin to start thinking about recovery you first need to acknowledge and accept the fact you have a problem, which I did not. Despite being dangerously underweight I still saw myself […]

Part I “You are not a mistake. You are not a problem to be solved. But you won’t discover this until you are willing to stop banging your head against the wall of shaming and caging and fearing yourself.” – Geneen Roth I’m 17 years old and I’m a recovering anorexic, and have been for […]

I’ve had the privilege to interact with a lot of teenagers, mostly to listen. What struck me most was that too many of them lack self-confidence and feel awkward, even though every single one has a special, unique talent. I started Give Us The Floor to help create a society in which every teenager understands […]

E-cigarette usage has become a trend. Do not mistake or confuse them with smokeless cigarettes. E-cigarettes are battery powered cigarettes designed to release a nicotine vapor that looks like smoke. Though originally touted as a better option to smoking without the same carcinogens from smoking tobacco, there are now concerns regarding the chemicals ingredients and […]