What Stories About Yourself Begin in Adolescence?

Unlikely Collaborators Hosts Pediatrician and Bestselling Author Cara Natterson, MD for a Spark Salon on Modern Adolescence and Identity Formation

LOS ANGELES, May 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Puberty is arriving earlier than it did even a generation ago. At the same time, the journey through adolescence is stretching longer, leaving many young people navigating years of rapid physical, emotional, and social change while adults struggle to keep up.

On Wednesday, May 20 at 7pm PT, Unlikely Collaborators will host pediatrician, adolescent health expert, and bestselling author Cara Natterson, MD, for a Spark Salon exploring how modern puberty is reshaping the way young people understand themselves and the world around them titled:

Inside the Adolescent Mind: Identity, Meaning, and Growing Up Today

Drawing from her bestselling books This Is So Awkward: Modern Puberty Explained and Decoding Boys: New Science Behind the Subtle Art of Raising Sons, as well as her work as the medical expert behind American Girl's The Care and Keeping of You series, Dr. Natterson explores what decades of research and clinical experience reveal about how adolescents form internal narratives during this critical stage of development.

At the heart of the conversation is a deeper question: What stories about ourselves begin forming during adolescence and how do those stories shape the way we move through the world long after childhood ends?

Puberty is not only a biological transition. It is also a period when young people begin making meaning of themselves, who they are, where they belong, how they are seen by others, and what feels possible for them.

Drawing from decades of clinical experience, research, and conversations with families, Dr. Natterson will explore what is happening beneath the surface during adolescence and why so many young people today feel overwhelmed, disconnected, anxious, or misunderstood.

The evening also invites adults to reflect on how many of their own assumptions, insecurities, and coping patterns may have first taken shape during these formative years.

The evening will take place in person at Unlikely Collaborators' Santa Monica headquarters and will also be livestreamed online.

Event Schedule

6:00 p.m. — Doors open and reception
7:00 p.m. — Program begins promptly (late entry not permitted)
8:00 p.m. — Reception

Cost: Free (registration required)

Register to Attend in person

Register to join live online

About Cara Natterson, MD

Cara Natterson, MD is a pediatrician, bestselling author, and leading expert on adolescent health and modern puberty. She is the author of This Is So Awkward: Modern Puberty Explained and Decoding Boys: New Science Behind the Subtle Art of Raising Sons, and served as the medical expert behind American Girl's bestselling The Care and Keeping of You series. Through her writing, speaking, podcasting, and clinical work, Dr. Natterson has helped millions of families better understand the emotional, social, and physical realities of growing up today.

About Spark Salons

Spark Salons are a signature program of Unlikely Collaborators, the nonprofit founded by Elizabeth R. Koch. These gatherings bring together grantees, researchers, artists, and collaborators for conversations that challenge perspectives and deepen connections. Past Spark Salon speakers have included illusionist Harris III, psychologist Scott Barry Kaufman, PhD, nutrition therapist Kim Shapira, MS, RD, mythologist John Bucher, Harvard Business School professor and author Michael Norton, PhD, visionary violinist Vijay Gupta, chef and entrepreneur Ellen Bennett, artist Candy Chang, digital workplace expert and author Alexandra Samuel, PhD, grief experts Brennan Wood and Dr. Donna L. Schuurman, neuroscientist and best-selling author Lisa Feldman Barrett, PhD, neuroscientist and NYU Dean Wendy Suzuki, PhD, futures designer Nick Foster, RDI, sleep psychologist Jade Wu, PhD, broadcaster and author Krista Tippett, journalist and author Eliot Stein, medical anthropologist and author Theresa MacPhail, PhD, poet, activist, and author Ian Manuel, and psychologist and bestselling author Sonja Lyubomirsky, PhD.

Watch the Spark Salons Trailer

About Unlikely Collaborators

Unlikely Collaborators is a nonprofit dedicated to helping people see themselves and the world more clearly. Founded by Elizabeth R. Koch, the organization is built on the Perception Box™ framework, the understanding that our experiences, beliefs, fears, and physiology shape the lens through which we interpret reality. By becoming aware of that lens, we create more space for reflection, flexibility, and meaningful change.

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SOURCE Unlikely Collaborators