Worried about your teen in 2025 (or 2026!)? You're not alone. Today's parents are navigating unprecedented challenges from AI Chatbots and deepfakes targeting teens to Fentanyl-laced drugs (even in counterfeit pills), and much more.
We're bringing this conversation back after Hurricane Helene postponed our 2024 event.
Join us for an updated, moderated panel discussion with [panelist names/credentials] as we explore:
✓ How AI and social media are reshaping teen mental health and identity
✓ The current drug landscape: what's new, what's deadly, and what parents often miss
✓ Brain science: why screens are so hard for teens (and adults!) to put down
✓ Practical strategies for having conversations that actually land
✓ Setting boundaries that work in real families, not just in parenting books
✓ Red flags to watch for and when to get help
This isn't a lecture. It's a real conversation for real parents dealing with real challenges in Asheville and beyond. Whether your teen is thriving or struggling, you'll leave with concrete tools and the reassurance that you're not navigating this alone.
This event took place on November 5, 2025 at Wrong Way’s River Lodge.
SPEAKERS:
Beth Hockman, M.S. is a parent coach, educator, facilitator, TEDx speaker, and homeschool mom. Beth has been in the experiential education field for over 28 years. She uses her experience and philosophical understanding of the experiential education field to write curriculum and consult for various organizations. She has a B.S. in Social Psychology and an M.S. in Experiential Education from Minnesota State University. Beth has worked for various adventure education programs—including 18 years with Outward Bound in both the U.S. and Africa. She is one of the founders of Asheville TAASC, a youth based non-profit that combines the power of wilderness leadership and service learning into value forming experiences for young people. Beth has worked as both a High School teacher and as an Academic Director. She believes in educating the whole person.
Kriya Lendzion, LCMHC, LCAS, CPS has journeyed from her own years as a “hot mess” teen in high conflict with her parents to becoming one of the nation’s leading youth addiction and prevention specialists. She has been a school counselor, adolescent therapist, and drug educator for over three decades. As a parent coach, speaker, and author, Kriya empowers adults to be “teen whisperers” with the youth in their lives, to help “addiction-proof” them for an increasingly risky and addictive world. Fondly known as “The Drug Lady” in our community, she regularly conducts drug and addiction education at schools across Buncombe County and provides programming, consulting, and training across the country.
MODERATOR
Ariana Figueroa is a board-certified Health and Wellness Coach trained at Duke Integrative Medicine. As a Health Coach and Facilitator, she aims to foster a space where insight and meaningful change can flourish. Curiosity, cultural humility, and compassion are core values in how Ariana approaches her work. She has a background in motivational interviewing, positive psychology, herbalism studies, group coaching, and one-on-one coaching. She is currently pursuing a Master’s in Social Work at Western Carolina University.