Mindfulness and Self-Compassion for Teen ADHD

March 15, 2021
This selection from the Instant Help Solutions series addresses teens struggling with symptoms of ADHD. The table of contents lists 10 chapters, from "What Is ADHD Anyway?" to "Steering Yourself to the Future You Choose." The text is frank and supportive: Besides discussions of symptoms, strategies, and specific mindfulness and self-compassion exercises, each chapter includes quotations from young people ages 12 to 20 (whose names indicate some ethnic diversity) who briefly share their trials, triumphs, and insights. The book mentions that although the condition is permanent, symptoms can effectively be reduced through mindfulness and self-compassion training plus other supports and medication, which it describes as the most highly effective treatment for some aspects of ADHD. However, it stresses that medications typically do not help with organization or time management, two topics thoroughly covered in the book. The sample scenarios may speak most to adolescents with relatively nonserious concerns about school, friends, and family; alcohol and sex are only briefly mentioned. The exercises are terrific for all teens, whether they have ADHD or not, and are largely accessible without having to read the whole work. Downloadable audio assistance and worksheets are added bonuses. The authors, who address anxiety throughout, repeatedly use the tired metaphor of steering the wheel of a fossil-fuel-powered vehicle, an unfortunate choice given the prevalence of environmental anxiety in today's young people. Dynamic art, uncredited, features silhouettes, often set against patterned backgrounds, that help break up the text. Helpful strategies for tackling ADHD. (endnotes) (Self-help. 12-18)

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