Teens in Turmoil: Avoiding and Coping with Crisis [Hardcover]

Carol Maxym (Author), Leslie B. York (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 7, 2000

An important, honest, and life-changing book for parents of troubled teens--coauthored by an expert psychotherapist and a "parent-who's-been-there"

More than ever before, it seems, we're discussing teenagers and their problems. But for all the talk, there have been few books offering any answers ... until now. In Teens in Turmoil, Dr. Carol Maxym and Leslie York offer parents a process through which they can become catalysts of change for their troubled adolescent. In a very accessible style that includes quizzes and charts, and illuminating family stories and examples, the authors guide parents toward making an honest assessment of their teen, themselves, and their family. Parents are then shown how to apply their increased knowledge and insight to everyday life where they can begin to implement positive change. The final section offers an extensive guide to making decisions about therapy, professional programs, and local or residential placement, along with resources and recommended reading.

Teens in Turmoil is a timely book that will speak to everyone who has worried in silence over the fate of their adolescent, and will help parents restore their adolescent's future while reclaiming their own lives.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

If you've got a teenager at home who is manipulating the family and refusing to live by your rules, consider the practical guidance of Teens in Turmoil. Aimed specifically at families experiencing severe distress, Teens provides insight and instruction through real-life examples. Most of the stories are full of anger and miscommunication--problems many parents are all too familiar with. Using tools like "instant replay" of unsuccessful conversations to elicit more positive exchanges, you'll learn how to achieve better results from incidents like poor grades, missing a curfew, or lying. Diagnosis for teen problems can be a little tricky--is what you're experiencing "normal," or have things gotten out of control? To this end, the guide offers helpful questions to ask yourself as well as warning signs: Is your teen being physically threatening or sexually promiscuous? Any abrupt changes in personal style or behavior? Certainly, teens test limits, experiment with style, and cop attitudes; that is as it should be during these years of mental and physical upheaval. But parents have every right to have standards and expectations that their children can be required to meet--even when the child in question is "nearly an adult." --Jill Lightner

From Publishers Weekly

Maxym, a psychotherapist who specializes in adolescents, and York, an educational consultant and mother of a formerly troubled teen, pull no punches in this practical yet compassionate handbook. The authors caution that the information may be hard for some readers to take but claim that only by confronting the unvarnished truth will one be able to effect change in oneself and, ultimately, the teen who is causing familial anguish. First arguing that "changing who is in control in the family is one of the crucial issues parents need to deal with," the authors then offer tools for making such a change. The headings are indicative of the authors' clear and forthright approach (the first part, "Understanding Where You Are Now," has chapters titled "What's Happening All Around Us: The High Stakes of Teen Culture," "What's Happening in Your Family: Beginning to See with Clarity" and "Taking Stock: The Big Five of Acting Out"). Lists, quizzes, sidebars, scenarios and action plans round out this exhaustive and timely treatise. The thoughtful assessment of positive and negative aspects of each school and treatment program listed in the resource guide is an extra boon. (Feb.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult; First Printing edition (February 7, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670887544
• ISBN-13: 978-0670887545
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,944,556 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars parenting support, February 22, 2000

By 

marilyn siegel (united states) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Teens in Turmoil: Avoiding and Coping with Crisis (Hardcover)

Teens in Turmoil is an excellent guide for parents/families with adolescents at risk. As a parent owho survived an out of control teenager, I struggled to find the resources needed to reclaim our lives as a family. The information was not readily accessible. The hunt was extensive. As a result, by the time I found the help we VERY much needed, we were in the throws of extreme chaos and crisis. Our lives ( all family members) were lost in the tailspin of fear. My teen was spinning in circles and we were caught within it. It became difficult to see a way out. Fortunately, I found the help we needed and we all made it successfully to the other side. She's a great adult now. However, a book like the one written by Carol Maxym and Leslie York can only be an asset to every parent and clinician. The concept of the controlling aspects of "crazy making" behaviors, the fears and the resources for change bring a great light to the end of a frightening path for parents. I hope that this book serves as a source for all who participate in the lives of teens. I know that it would have been significantly beneficial for me.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Best book on teens I've read, February 17, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Teens in Turmoil: Avoiding and Coping with Crisis (Hardcover)

I highly recommend this book if you are having problems with your teen(s). It offers practical advice and is written with a realistic outlook. This book allowed me to see how my daughter's problems have affected my life and our family, and how a troubled teen can become the center of everyone's existence, to their own detriment. It provides resources for crisis situations as well.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Teens in Turmoil, July 5, 2003

By 

Kim Black (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Teens in Turmoil: A Path to Change for Parents, Adolescents, and Their Families (Paperback)

There is no book that I would recommend more highly to families struggling with the teens in their lives. So many of us scratch our heads in dismay at what became of those precious children we raised as they morph into disrespectful, manipulative, defiant members of the household. So many families feel like they are "walking on eggshells" when their teenager is at home and they worry about where they really are and what they are doing when they're not home. I read a number of books that were interesting and gave me a few insights about how to deal with our daughter but they were really only bandaid approaches. I was on the verge of giving up hope until I read this book.
Carol provides an uncanny insight into some of the reasons why these behaviors have developed and then, based on the level of difficulty you are experiencing with your child, she offers actual possible courses of action! She describes in depth where to get more information or help depending on what you think will most benefit your own relationships. Finally, at the end she lists her website where you can e-mail her directly for personal help if you are not sure what your child really needs.
I almost did not read this book as I had read so many that did not really help. But, I picked it up and leafed through it and immediately knew this was the one we needed. Reading it gave us real direction. Taking the action that we decided on has made a life changing difference in all of our lives. She discusses all the areas of adolescence that are so powerful in the world today including lying, alcohol, drugs, sexual acting out and more. Our daughter is in a program that is transforming her into a strong, confident, responsible person and we are all much closer and communicating on an intimate level I never expected to be able to achieve. There are many more fabulous programs out there that the average family counseling does not know about or understand. Carol is knowledgeable about virtually all of them and, if you choose, as we did, she helped us discern exactly which program would benefit our daughter the most. We are getting our daughter back thanks to this book and the action we took.
I CANNOT RECOMMEND THIS BOOK HIGHLY ENOUGH.