You are watching TV when your phone rings. It’s strange because it’s 2:00 a.m.

You are home alone watching TV. A character dials a number on their phone. Your phone rings. You answer the phone.

You say, “Hello.”

There is silence.

You hang up the phone.

You have a message on your answering machine.

It says, “This is the call from the mysterious phone number you called earlier.

We will call again at 4: 30. “You hang up the phone.

You have a message on your answering machine.

It says, “This is the call from the mysterious phone number you called earlier.

We will call again at 4: 45.”

You hang up the phone.

We will call again at 5: 30.”

You hang up the phone.

You have a message on your answering machine.

It says, “This is the call from the mysterious phone number you called earlier.

We will call again at 5: 45.”

You hang up the phone.

You have a message on your answering machine.

It says, “This is the call from the mysterious phone number you called earlier.

We will call again at 7: 00.”

You hang up the phone.

You have a message on your answering machine.

It says, “This is the call from the mysterious phone number you called earlier.

We will call again at 8: 00.”

You are watching TV when your phone rings. It’s strange because it’s 2:00 a.m.

It’s your spouse. She’s talking in hushed tones, something about your teenage son. You are angry because she never calls at this time of night, and you quickly hang up. Your son is standing in front of the door. He can see you are upset and wants to know what’s wrong.

You can’t tell him and you walk away.

Later you find out he has been talking with a girl on the internet. You never thought he would be interested in her, but he is and she is giving him a hard time about it. He has even been sending her photos of his private parts. He tells you he wants to talk to her but you try to explain to him that this is not the way to go about it.

It’s not.

Because you are awake and aware, you see the danger in his actions. Your son has been taught that he has to take control of a situation at all times, and that’s exactly what he’s doing.

You may not be happy with the choices your son is making, but you can’t let fear stop you from seeing that there is a problem.

If you don’t know how to handle the situation, then take it to your husband or a trusted male relative. In my office, I have a network of male counselors who are well trained in talking to troubled teens. If you think your son is seeing a girl online, the first thing you should do is talk to him. Explain that you are angry about the pictures and that you are not happy with his actions. Tell him that you don’t want to see him act like that and that you want him to talk to you about what he wants to do with his life.

Give him an opportunity to explain himself, but don’t leave the situation open-ended. The last thing he needs is for you to start telling him what to do.

Get him to meet you somewhere neutral. I prefer a place with a lot of mirrors, so he can see himself in a truthful way. Let him know that you will not judge him. Let him know that you understand that he may be confused, and that you care. He should be able to tell you about the girl and give you details about the situation.

If he is not open to talking to you, you need to take a step back and let your son figure out how to handle the situation on his own.

If he has had no contact with the girl, then you need to meet with her. Sit down with her and let her know that your son is seeing another girl and that you know about it. Let her know that she needs to respect your son.

She may be angry that he is betraying her or that she believes she is in love with him, but that is her problem. If she cares about him, then she will respect his decision to be with someone else. If she has been trying to contact him, she should also respect that he is seeing another girl and let him know that.

If your son is not open to talking to you, then you need to find a female counselor and explain to her that your son is seeing a girl online and that you want to find out more about her. She should then contact the girl and tell her that your son is seeing her and that he wants to meet with her.