Q: I’d really like to talk to my parents about something that is going on at school but I am afraid my mom will go straight to my friend’s mom and I don’t want my friend to get mad at me.  How can I talk to my mom and keep it private?

Mom: You may not be able to. If your friend is involved in something that puts her or another student in danger, a responsible parent will have no choice but to take action. If your friend is doing something harmful to herself like cutting, abusing drugs, or if she has an eating disorder, you may have to risk your friendship to save your friend’s life. Even if it isn’t life threatening, your friend may be doing something that, for her own health and well-being, her parents really do need to know about. But if it’s something you just need to talk about and need help thinking through, you can ask your mom to respect your friend’s confidence. You will have to trust your mom to make the right decision. Your friendship may be a casualty of doing the right thing, but that’s what a real friend does, right?