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Crazy-Stressed: Saving Today's Overwhelmed Teens with Love, Laughter, and the Science of Resilience
A little resilience goes a long way
Peel back the cheerful facade that parents present, and you'll find that many are worried about their teens.
Mood swings, impulsiveness, poor judgment, and other problems peak in these years. Add stressors such as screen addiction, cyberbullying, increasing academic demands, and time-consuming athletic commitments . . . and it's no surprise that today's teenagers rank as the most anxious in 50 years.
Parents long to help, but how? Based on a career counseling kids and their parents, psychologist Michael Bradley locates the most powerful protective trait: resilience. Teens with this crucial quality know how to handle difficulty, overcome obstacles, and bounce back from setbacks.
Packed with insights from neuroscience and psychology, real-life case studies, and a dose of humor, Crazy-Stressed sheds light on the teen brain and offers a wealth of resiliency-boosting strategies. In it, Dr. Bradley reveals:
What kids these days are really going through ● Ways to strengthen the seven skills every teen needs to survive and thrive ● What-to-do-when suggestions for common behavior, school, and social issues ● Tactics for coping with conflict, teaching consequences, improving communication, staying connected, and more
It's not easy being a teen—and it's certainly not easy parenting one. Always frank and often funny, Crazy-Stressed will become your go-to guide . . . and your kids may even thank you for it.
288 pages, Paperback
Published April 27, 2017
34 people are currently reading
144 people want to read
About the author
Michael J. Bradley
21 books8 followersMichael Bradley grew up in Philadelphia, where he attended parochial schools before moving on to LaSalle College on a military scholarship. After briefly serving as an officer in the U.S. Army, he entered law school and supported himself with a temporary job counseling troubled adolescents in an inner-city Philadelphia high school. To his amazement, he developed a passionate interest in his new sideline job and switched to graduate studies in psychology, ultimately earning a doctorate from Temple University.
Since then, Dr. Bradley has worked with children, adolescents, and their families in treatment settings ranging from jails, to social service agencies, to private practice. His professional experience with children encompasses virtually every aspect of youth work.
In addition to working as a licensed psychologist, Dr. Bradley holds specialized certification in the treatment of substance abuse disorders from the American College of Professional Psychology. He is also a member and Fellow of the American College of Forensic Examiners, and is called upon to give expert courtroom testimony.
As an expert on adolescent behavior, Dr. Bradley is frequently quoted in the press. He has also appeared on hundreds of TV and radio programs, including NBC's Today Show, CNN World News Tonight, Pure Oxygen and National Public Radio. He delivers speeches before national and state PTA conventions and many other parenting and professional groups, and he can be booked to conduct seminars and workshops and deliver keynote speeches almost anywhere.
Dr. Bradley has received ten national publishing awards for his books, including a Benjamin Franklin award for "Best New Voice in Nonfiction." He is also a recipient of the prestigious William Penn Humanitarian Award, Commission on Human Relations.
Dr. Bradley, his wife Cynthia, and their biological son Ross adopted Sarah, a brave and beautiful baby who arrived in this world with tremendous challenges and then survived the most difficult first year of life that most can imagine. After Sarah and the Bradleys finally found each other, that new family went through a terrible time of forging attachments. But after a year, Sarah suddenly blossomed into an incredibly loving and happy little girl. This "gut-wrenching and indescribably rewarding" experience reinforced the core premise of Dr. Bradley's work with children, which holds that "love is indeed the most real, potent aspect of parenting. And, in parenting, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger."
Dr. Bradley lives with his family in suburban Philadelphia, where he worries incessantly that his teenage son will grow up to be just like him.
Since then, Dr. Bradley has worked with children, adolescents, and their families in treatment settings ranging from jails, to social service agencies, to private practice. His professional experience with children encompasses virtually every aspect of youth work.
In addition to working as a licensed psychologist, Dr. Bradley holds specialized certification in the treatment of substance abuse disorders from the American College of Professional Psychology. He is also a member and Fellow of the American College of Forensic Examiners, and is called upon to give expert courtroom testimony.
As an expert on adolescent behavior, Dr. Bradley is frequently quoted in the press. He has also appeared on hundreds of TV and radio programs, including NBC's Today Show, CNN World News Tonight, Pure Oxygen and National Public Radio. He delivers speeches before national and state PTA conventions and many other parenting and professional groups, and he can be booked to conduct seminars and workshops and deliver keynote speeches almost anywhere.
Dr. Bradley has received ten national publishing awards for his books, including a Benjamin Franklin award for "Best New Voice in Nonfiction." He is also a recipient of the prestigious William Penn Humanitarian Award, Commission on Human Relations.
Dr. Bradley, his wife Cynthia, and their biological son Ross adopted Sarah, a brave and beautiful baby who arrived in this world with tremendous challenges and then survived the most difficult first year of life that most can imagine. After Sarah and the Bradleys finally found each other, that new family went through a terrible time of forging attachments. But after a year, Sarah suddenly blossomed into an incredibly loving and happy little girl. This "gut-wrenching and indescribably rewarding" experience reinforced the core premise of Dr. Bradley's work with children, which holds that "love is indeed the most real, potent aspect of parenting. And, in parenting, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger."
Dr. Bradley lives with his family in suburban Philadelphia, where he worries incessantly that his teenage son will grow up to be just like him.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
March 4, 2017
Illuminating! Bradley has created a wonderful text on dealing with today's adolescents. It would be beneficial to any parent, teacher, or adult who has interactions with teenagers. The author begins with an explanation of today's youth, and how the pressures they face today are much different than the ones we older folks dealt with. The main stress point today is social media, specifically cyberbullying. When I was a teenager, there were bullies, and cliques, and of course they were difficult to deal with. But only while at school, once out of school for the day I had not to deal with them any longer. Today's teens, thanks to all the social media platforms, have to deal with these factions 24 hours a day, seven days a week. They never know when they are going to be slammed online. No wonder today's kids seem so exhausted! And this exhaustion plays into teens making bad decisions. Behavioral, schoolwork, sex, and on and on. Bradley's solution is to not shelter teens from the bombardment. After all, how could we, there seems to be a new social media platform everyday. His solution is to teach kids resilience. How to absorb the hits and bounce back effectively. In time, teen brains mature enough to deal with these life stresses, but it takes time. The author lays out seven strategies to teach resilience. And then goes in depth into how parents can help. The "do's and don'ts" of dealing with teens. All in all, this is a very effective book. I lingered over it for a long time, as there is a lot of information inside, and I found it very engaging. I look forward to trying the ideas in my classroom.
May 26, 2017
This is a review book. I found this book useful, both as a parent and as a teacher of ninth graders. Bradley offers solid reasons for why your sweet little kid suddenly became a raging lunatic who rolls eyes and slams doors. Understanding what is going on in the teen brain helps remind parents (and teachers) that teens aren't being evil - they are just acting in a developmentally appropriate fashion. It is our job to curb and redirect them, guiding them into adulthood without losing our tempers (and minds). Using humor, psychology, and a handy list of Dos and Don'ts, Dr. Bradley gives common sense advice about helping out kids develop that trendy buzzword known as resilience. I like books that help adults teach teens how to be adults themselves - this book offers practical advice but does not condone helicopter parenting. A worthy read for anyone dealing with adolescents.
September 4, 2018
I found this book at just the right time and it helped save my sanity. A little humor, a lot of great advice and real-life stories that helped me realize I’m not the only with a crazy teen.
June 6, 2017
If parents believe their teens face more stressors than the previous generation, Dr. Michael J. Bradley wants to let them know they are right. With the proliferation of social media, increased screen time, pressure to perform in school and more, kids are challenged by a growing list of outside forces that can trip them up and make them difficult to parent.
A psychologist who counsels kids and their parents, Bradley has written a guide called Crazy-Stressed: Saving Today’s Overwhelmed Teens With Love, Laughter, and the Science of Resilience. Bradley starts off by defining the kinds of things kids are facing these days as a way to inform parents that they can’t make assumptions about teen lives based on their own experience of growing up.
Through stories gleaned from his professional experience as well as personal stories from raising his own children, Bradley presents the case for teaching teens how to be resilient so they can learn how to get through the issues they face as they mature into adulthood. Parents can provide love and guidance, but Bradley says they must realize they can’t protect their kids from every stressful or dangerous situation they will encounter. Kids are more likely to make it through the teen years to become successful adults if they learn skills to communicate, take ownership of their decisions, and bounce back from mistakes they will inevitably make.
Throughout Crazy-Stressed Bradley’s tone is light and humorous, which makes it easier for parents to absorb the points he makes. His personal stories from his own parenting make him relatable, so parents shouldn’t feel he’s imparting unrealistic advice. Rather, his own stories show that parents can make mistakes as they act in ways they think is right for their children and still learn how to do a better job in the future.
Different sections outline the issues facing teens, show parents how to react in stressful situations, and provide guidelines for staying connected with teens as they mature. It’s a guide that parents will want to consult again and again for a refresher on ideas to handle new issues throughout their children’s teen years.
The publisher provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
A psychologist who counsels kids and their parents, Bradley has written a guide called Crazy-Stressed: Saving Today’s Overwhelmed Teens With Love, Laughter, and the Science of Resilience. Bradley starts off by defining the kinds of things kids are facing these days as a way to inform parents that they can’t make assumptions about teen lives based on their own experience of growing up.
Through stories gleaned from his professional experience as well as personal stories from raising his own children, Bradley presents the case for teaching teens how to be resilient so they can learn how to get through the issues they face as they mature into adulthood. Parents can provide love and guidance, but Bradley says they must realize they can’t protect their kids from every stressful or dangerous situation they will encounter. Kids are more likely to make it through the teen years to become successful adults if they learn skills to communicate, take ownership of their decisions, and bounce back from mistakes they will inevitably make.
Throughout Crazy-Stressed Bradley’s tone is light and humorous, which makes it easier for parents to absorb the points he makes. His personal stories from his own parenting make him relatable, so parents shouldn’t feel he’s imparting unrealistic advice. Rather, his own stories show that parents can make mistakes as they act in ways they think is right for their children and still learn how to do a better job in the future.
Different sections outline the issues facing teens, show parents how to react in stressful situations, and provide guidelines for staying connected with teens as they mature. It’s a guide that parents will want to consult again and again for a refresher on ideas to handle new issues throughout their children’s teen years.
The publisher provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
July 24, 2021
I have four teens and the advice in this book is helpful! I really enjoyed Dr. Bradley's relaxed style of writing so that you feel like you are not being lectured by an expert but instead being given so useful advice when things are getting tough. The stories from his sessions with teenagers and parents help to make the advice more useful as you know it is real. Some of the sessions made me quite emotional. Most of all, I love the advice, such as The importance of remembering that that your child’s number one resilience-building teen job is to develop her own identity.
The only addition I would make is that it is important to remember that if you have children with additional needs you may need to seek further advice and each of your teens will be very different and may need differing approaches.
The only addition I would make is that it is important to remember that if you have children with additional needs you may need to seek further advice and each of your teens will be very different and may need differing approaches.
September 26, 2017
Parenting books are usually at the bottom of my "want to read" pile, but the author's interesting background and anecdotes combined with straight-forward, practical advice kept me interested and engaged. After reading this I have a lot more empathy for my teen and can see my own errors in how I've been reacting to certain behaviors. I particularly found the "P-A-C brain" explanation and "resilience parenting" theory incredibly insightful and helpful. While I hope I don't have to ever deal with the more serous teen issues Dr. Bradley discusses in this book, I found it overall quite helpful. I would recommend it to anyone with a teen 13 or older.
July 5, 2017
Are you a parent that puts too much pressure on your teen? If so, your teen may develop anxiety, depression, or may even be suicidal. This week on our weekly radio show Radio Health Journal, we discuss with experts the pressures your teens face and how you can help it. To listen to our full radio show, please check out the link HERE: https://radiohealthjournal.wordpress....
January 18, 2018
An updated and extremely similar book to his earlier "Yes Your Teen is Crazy" best seller. No need to read both, go with this one. My second favorite teen parenting book (I've read many!) -- easy to read and useful information, and most importantly reassuring to parents. (If you're wondering, my very most favorite must-have teen parenting book is 'Untangled: Guiding Teenage Girls...to Adulthood' by Lisa Damour)
September 29, 2019
Practical advice, helpful information, and, lots of stories of commiseration. Not at all preachy. I updated some of my parenting ideas, felt happy that I was already practicing some methods, and found several ways to improve (self-assessment...earning 75% in parenting). Keeping this handy for easy reference since I know that every time I think I'm starting to get the hang of parenting...they prove me wrong.
June 6, 2017
Filled with plenty of information and strategies. A quick read.
November 8, 2017
Really relevant to today's teens, if you have teenagers I highly recommend it!
January 6, 2018
A practical and accessible manual on raising today's teens. I enjoyed his straightforward manner and humor. Also his main message is love and calm, which is always sound advice.
September 15, 2018
Good focus on raising adults who can make good decisions for themselves versus how to get your child to do what you want them to do.
February 11, 2019
Kind of ordinary and second rate information
January 19, 2020
So helpful and good to refer back to again and again!
April 23, 2017
We were sent an advance review copy of Crazy-Stressed so that we could make a review.
First, we need to explain our review policy. All of our blogs are Christian-based. This means that anything we review we read from a fundamental Christian perspective. Therefore, when we read a book that uses our Heavenly Father’s name in vain, we immediately knock the rating down to zero. This means that a book has to work harder to get any stars.
Our rating scale is from zero to five stars.
That being said, the advanced copy, which might differ slightly from the final book, has The Lord’s name in vain four times. Once on page 63 and three times on page 67.
It is interesting to note that Dr. Bradley spells this out completely (all in one lowercase word) as he does for the name of a female cat. However, for all other foul words he blanks out part of the word. He uses dashes in place of a few letters. Somehow, he sees this as not quite so bad.
Now that we have explained our ranking system, let’s get to the review. This book is well written. Dr. Bradley does not burden his readers with a lot of medical jargon. He explains things in simple, easy to understand English. He might even be able to speak a little redneck.
He has some funny stories and uses humor throughout the book. Crazy-Stressed is a fun read, other than the bad language. It is also an important read for any parent of a present or future teen.
We wish this book had been available when we were raising our four living children. Perhaps we could have used some of the tactics described in the book.
One of the great things about Crazy-Stressed is that Dr. Bradley tells parents that it is okay to be stressed by your teen. He lets his readers know that this is only natural and to be expected.
We give Crazy-Stressed a total of three stars. We would have been able to give it five stars, but the language used in some parts was not appropriate for Christian readers. Dr. Bradley actually should know better than this. It is possible to speak today’s language without using inappropriate words. This is exactly what parents should do for their children.
Dr. Bradley tells his readers about how teens model their parents. From our own experience, we find that it is easy to fall into using certain words when you hear them often. If we want teens to show proper respect and use proper language to show that respect, we must use proper language ourselves.
We recommend Crazy-Stressed by Dr. Michael Bradley with a language warning. Very often just reading poor language allows it to sneak into our conversations.
First, we need to explain our review policy. All of our blogs are Christian-based. This means that anything we review we read from a fundamental Christian perspective. Therefore, when we read a book that uses our Heavenly Father’s name in vain, we immediately knock the rating down to zero. This means that a book has to work harder to get any stars.
Our rating scale is from zero to five stars.
That being said, the advanced copy, which might differ slightly from the final book, has The Lord’s name in vain four times. Once on page 63 and three times on page 67.
It is interesting to note that Dr. Bradley spells this out completely (all in one lowercase word) as he does for the name of a female cat. However, for all other foul words he blanks out part of the word. He uses dashes in place of a few letters. Somehow, he sees this as not quite so bad.
Now that we have explained our ranking system, let’s get to the review. This book is well written. Dr. Bradley does not burden his readers with a lot of medical jargon. He explains things in simple, easy to understand English. He might even be able to speak a little redneck.
He has some funny stories and uses humor throughout the book. Crazy-Stressed is a fun read, other than the bad language. It is also an important read for any parent of a present or future teen.
We wish this book had been available when we were raising our four living children. Perhaps we could have used some of the tactics described in the book.
One of the great things about Crazy-Stressed is that Dr. Bradley tells parents that it is okay to be stressed by your teen. He lets his readers know that this is only natural and to be expected.
We give Crazy-Stressed a total of three stars. We would have been able to give it five stars, but the language used in some parts was not appropriate for Christian readers. Dr. Bradley actually should know better than this. It is possible to speak today’s language without using inappropriate words. This is exactly what parents should do for their children.
Dr. Bradley tells his readers about how teens model their parents. From our own experience, we find that it is easy to fall into using certain words when you hear them often. If we want teens to show proper respect and use proper language to show that respect, we must use proper language ourselves.
We recommend Crazy-Stressed by Dr. Michael Bradley with a language warning. Very often just reading poor language allows it to sneak into our conversations.
December 23, 2017
I devoured this book. It’s excellent. Validated many of the things I already believed and gave so many practical tactics, tips and approaches for parenting teens. This feels like a must read.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews