YMCA Partners with Leading Child Psychologist Dr. Beth Halbert for Teen Suicide Awareness

BERKLEY, CA, January 25, 2012 (Press-News.org) The YMCA-PG&E TEEN CENTER has partnered with leading child psychologist and bestselling author Dr. Beth Halbert to conduct an important series of discussions with the first being the topic of teenage suicide prevention entitled, "Teen Life Over Suicide." This event will take place on February 7, 2012, beginning at 5PM, at 2111 Martin Luther King Junior Way. The seminar will also be a live web cast and interactive Twitter chat.

Various Bay Area YMCA's (San Francisco's Embarcadero, Chinatown, Bay View Hunters Point) have joined in partnership with Dr. Halbert to educate both parents and teens via live web and Twitter chat on this important subject. Touching on principles from her Amazon.com bestselling book, Embracing Defiance: Helping Your Child Express Their Unique Voice While Keeping Your Sanity, "Teen Life Over Suicide" will address the challenges of adolescence and explore different methods of overcoming these hurdles. Families will learn communication skills that will relieve frustration and strengthen their relationships through the development of a positive attitude and greater self-acceptance. Dr. Beth's agenda is "win by choosing life," addressing and welcoming the strongest support systems of our next generation - peers, teachers, leaders, and parents.

Working with at-risk youth at their Teen Center, the YMCA has come alongside Dr. Halbert in her pursuit of promoting attention toward the emotional hardships faced by kids, furthering the campaigns for emotional well-being in youth today. Together they are lobbying to shine a light on such issues as bullying, teen depression, and family awareness, which have recently received much needed attention in news stories today.

To follow Dr. Beth's live town hall meeting on Twitter, use the hashtag #TeenLifeOverSuicide. Further information about this event can be found at http://teenlifeoversuicide.eventbrite.com/. For media inquiries please contact Lisbeth Cervantes at 415-490-8908 or email at lisbeth@elle-cc.com.

About the YMCA Central Bay Area

Founded in 1903, the YMCA of the Central Bay Area is an association of men, women, and children joined together by a shared commitment to nurture the potential of every youth, promote healthy living and foster a sense of social responsibility. Every day, we work side-by-side with our neighbors in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties to ensure that everyone, regardless of age, income or background, has the opportunity to learn, grow and thrive. More information can be found at http://www.ymca-cba.org

About Dr. Beth Halbert

Unlike other psychologists or parenting experts, Dr. Beth combines her clinical psychological expertise with warmth and playfulness to create new possibilities for parents and teens/children. She talks to adults and kids in easy-to-understand language to assist them through personal and familial challenges. She gets parents and teens/children to talk with each other, to honor their differences, to accept each other as they are, to build healthy boundaries with each other, and to create more interactive, connected relationships.

As a licensed child, family, and teen psychologist, Dr. Beth has worked with hundreds of families to create stronger parent-teen bonds. Her best-selling book, Embracing defiance, Helping Your Child Express Their Unique Voice While Keeping Your Sanity, is available at http://www.Amazon.com. For more information on Dr. Beth please go to http://www.drbeth.com.