Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life for Teens: A Guide to Living an Extraordinary Life [Paperback]

Joseph Ciarrochi (Author), Louise Hayes (Author), Ann Bailey (Author), Steven Hayes (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2012

If you could only get past feelings of embarrassment, fear, self-criticism, and self-doubt, how would your life be different? You might take more chances and make more mistakes, but you’d also be able to live more freely and confidently than ever before.

Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life for Teens is a workbook that provides you with essential skills for coping with the difficult and sometimes overwhelming emotions that stress you out and cause you pain. The emotions aren’t going anywhere, but you can find out how to deal with them. Once you do, you will become a mindful warrior—a strong person who handles tough emotions with grace and dignity—and gain many more friends and accomplishments along the way.

Based in proven-effective acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), this book will arm you with powerful skills to help you use the power of mindfulness in everyday situations, stop finding faults in yourself and start solving your problems, how to be kinder to yourself so you feel confident and have a greater sense of self-worth, and how to identify the values that will help you create the life of your dreams.

Editorial Reviews

Review

‘This book is a fantastic resource, full of wisdom, compassion, and extremely practical tools for helping teenagers thrive in the face of life’s challenges. It is not only essential reading for teenagers, but also for parents, teachers, and any therapists or counselors who work with this age group.”
—Russ Harris, author of The Happiness Trap and The Reality Slap

“In Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life for Teens, Joseph V. Ciarrochi, Louise Hayes, and Ann Bailey provide teenagers with access to the powerful principles of acceptance and commitment therapy. The lessons are broadly applicable to any number of struggles a teen might have. Teens can't help but recognize their own struggles in the stories told and dare to pursue their own hopes in the exercises offered. Perhaps most importantly, in the midst of a stage when many peoples’ thoughts and feelings isolate them from the lives they care about, these authors communicate clearly that the readers are not alone and don’t have to struggle. I believe this book will be an invaluable resource for any therapist, parent, family member, or friend who wants to help a teen they care about.”
—Emily K. Sandoz, PhD, assistant professor of psychology at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette

“It’s hard being a human, and it’s not easier being a teenager. Ciarrochi, Hayes, and Bailey clearly know what they’re talking about from their own experiences and from working with youths who struggle. This is a book that should have been written long ago. I wish someone had given it to me when I was a teenager.”
—Rikard K. Wicksell, PhD, licensed clinical psychologist and a clinical researcher at Karolinska University Hospital and the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden

“An extraordinary resource for teens and adolescents who are struggling with everything from the trials of being a teenager to more serious problems. The authors provide an engaging, compassionate, and understandable road map with practical suggestions and exercises that any teen will want to explore. It is an amazing gift to have such a useful book to recommend to teens and their families.”
—Jennifer Gregg, PhD, associate professor at San Jose State University and coauthor of The Diabetes Lifestyle Book

“Get Out Of Your Mind and Into Your Life for Teens is an extraordinary guide for teenagers pursuing extraordinary lives. Ciarrochi, Hayes, and Bailey offer practical exercises and introduce us to characters who use ‘bold warrior’ skills to pursue more intentional and meaningful lives. In so doing, they lessen the stigma most teens feel when they struggle with common problems, such as rumors, loneliness, and harsh criticism from others. My hope for this book is that it will become a textbook for high school and college students all over the world.”
—Patricia J. Robinson, PhD, coauthor of The Mindfulness and Acceptance Workbook for Depression and Real Behavior Change in Primary Care

About the Author

Joseph Ciarrochi, PhD, is professor of psychology at the University of Western Sydney and an active researcher with numerous national competitive grants. His research focuses on understanding and developing social and emotional well-being. Ciarrochi has written over eighty international journal articles, books, and book chapters, and is regularly invited to speak at conferences and leading universities and institutions around the world. He has authored and edited eight books related to the promotion of mental health and well-being.

Louise Hayes, PhD, is a clinical psychologist and academic with the University of Melbourne in Australia. She has devoted her career to helping young people and their families. She is a leader in adapting acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) for adolescents, researches the outcomes of ACT for young people, and conducts ACT training for professionals internationally.

Ann Bailey, MA, is an experienced clinical practitioner who helps people manage their emotions and live more vital lives.

Foreword writer Steven C. Hayes, PhD, is Foundation Professor of Psychology at the University of Nevada, Reno. He is the author of innumerable books and scientific articles, including the successful ACT workbook Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life.

Product Details

• Paperback: 152 pages
• Publisher: Instant Help; 1 edition (July 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1608821935
• ISBN-13: 978-1608821938
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 0.4 x 9.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #18,228 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #14 in Books > Teens > Education & Reference > Social Science
  • #17 in Books > Teens > Health, Mind & Body > Mental Health
  • #75 in Books > Teens > Social Issues

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A novel, engaging approach for teens and those who love them! June 15, 2012

By Amy R. Murrell

Format:Paperback

The teen years can be plagued with self-doubt and painful emotion, and teenagers caught-up in their thoughts and feelings may not be able to see what matters most. Struggling teenagers may withdraw from activities and people, so a book that reaches out to teens is of utmost importance. In Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life for Teens by Joseph Ciarrochi, Louise Hayes, and Ann Bailey, you will be introduced to Jess and Sam - two teens who are experiencing negative self-evaluation, social impairment, and related difficulties. This creative approach gives readers a concrete way to see that they are not alone. Along with Jess and Sam, readers will learn to slow down, gain some distance from their "mind chatter", recognize their strengths, and engage in behaviors that help them live out their values. The authors, all of whom have extensive backgrounds in conducting Acceptance and Commitment Therapy with youth, share their clinical insight as well as personal experience from their teen years - this makes the book equally relevant to teens as a stand-alone self-help book and to clinicians who might use it with teen clients as an adjunct to treatment. The book is easy and enjoyable to read. While some of the language may seem unnatural at the beginning of the book, the authors do an excellent job of acknowledging this and asking readers to "stick with it". This genuine and honest nature is apparent throughout, so if you read and engage in the book's exercises, you will be glad you did!
Amy R. Murrell, Ph.D.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Get out of your mind and into your life for teens June 19, 2012

By Kstrosahl

Format:Paperback

Finally! A truely useful self help book that speaks to the contemporary teen spirit. This book really rocks and it is now a core ingredient of my work with teens in clinical practice. The author's disclose their own trials and struggles when they were teens and the types of problems they stuggled with makes it easier for any teen to relate to what they are saying. The book presents a very practical approach to developing a set of skills designed to increase personal flexibility! There are lots of very doable home based exercises that teens can practice on their own to increase their personal flexibility.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars 4 Stars June 17, 2012

By SandyReview

Format:Paperback

4 Stars. Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life for Teens had me hooked from the foreword. Obviously, I'm not a teen anymore so I'm not exactly the target market, but I do sort of wish this book had been available for me as a teen. There were so many times that I judged incorrectly, not just people, but situations, and frankly still misjudge sometimes. But had this book been available to tell me that pushing past my comfort zones could be potentially rewarding and that saying no out of fear would only lead to building that fear up even greater in my mind...well I can't say for sure that it would have made a huge difference, but it might have.

Of course, hindsight is 20/20, and being able to look back on my teen years from adulthood, I'd say I think these ideas, principles, and exercises presented in this book would have definitely helped. But that's if I was actually willing to do the exercises as a teen. Also, considering I was a pretty stubborn kid (was????), I'm not sure I would have listened to anyone telling me to step out of the safety of my comfort zone.

All of that being said, I feel like this book if it's not helpful for teens (again, I'm not really in a position to judge that) might be helpful for parents of teens (even pre-teens maybe) and any other person (i.e. teacher, school counselor, etc) that might work with teens and pre-teens. The authors try to cover quite a large subject in a small book, and while I personally feel like I got a lot out of it and feel like I know some other adults who might also be able to benefit from this read, I think some of these subjects might be better handled not from a book but with interaction with one's parents or loved ones. Now I realize that's not always an option, at which point, I would definitely recommend this book. For me, it was a fast 4 star read with a lot of take away information to be applied to myself and to my future children. (Chapter 7 especially stuck with me. Realizing my mind is a problem finding machine, and that frankly sometimes the problems it finds are completely imaginary was quite helpful.)