DR. WALLACE: I have a problem getting to sleep at night. This may sound funny, but I count sheep every night, and I usually count into the thousands before I doze off. After school, I'm usually so tired I have to take a catnap. My mother thinks I'm lazy, but this is not the case. What can I do? — Jackie, Hobart, Indiana

JACKIE: During your teen years, your body is changing rapidly and sometimes throws itself out of sync.

One way to get back to normal is to stick to a rigid sleeping schedule. Go to bed and get up at the same time each day, no catnaps allowed. A good sleep-inducer is a warm bath and a glass of warm low-fat milk. Warmth is soothing, and the milk contains an amino acid that helps bring about sleep. Pleasant dreams!

FORGET HIS LOOKS, MOVE ON!

DR. WALLACE: I've been dating Charlie for about a month. He is terribly handsome, but at times, he is super aggressive, which sometimes scares me. He doesn't seem to know the meaning of "stop" or "no." I like Charlie and know of several girls who would like to go out with him if I were to cut him loose. Several other girls at school are very, very nice to me because they see me walking around campus with Charlie a lot. I think they actually just want to get up close to him more than they want to talk to me, but it's nice, and I have met a lot of new people since I started dating Charlie. Right now, however, my main problem is that he is all over me even though I have told him many, many times not be so forward with me. His hands are literally all over my body (over my clothes only, so far.) What can I do to cool his aggression? I like him but want to set boundaries so that he will calm down when he is around me. — Anonymous, via email

ANONYMOUS: Forget about how Charlie looks or the fact that other girls would like to go out with him. Your instincts are warning you to stop seeing Charlie. Making you feel scared is very wrong! The best way to end this unnecessary feeling is through total separation from the one who is causing it. My advice is to eventually find another young man who respects you — and who you respect and feel comfortable with as well.

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at rwallace@thegreatestgift.com. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: at Pixabay