How to Help Your Anxious Teen: Discovering the Surprising Sources of Their Worries and Fears

by Jessica Thompson

Help Your Teen Find Joy and Peace
 
If your son or daughter is suffering from anxiety, you probably have more questions than answers: What is causing the anxiety? Is this normal teenage angst or something more serious? What can I do to help?
 
Jessica Thompson, the mother of three teens, has seen kids struggle with anxiousness. She wants you to understand the issues surrounding teenage anxiety and how our culture, the church, and perhaps even you may be contributing to the problem.
 
The culture tells kids that it’s not okay to be normal, that social media is vital to their well-being, and that athletic, academic, and other accolades are all-important.
 
The church, though well-intentioned, sometimes places undue pressure on teens to “do big things for God” and “be the best Christian you can be.”
 
Caring parents may inadvertently overcorrect their teens’ behavior and try to control it (“helicopter parenting”). They may also use their kids’ accomplishments to build their own identity or try to be their children’s best friend.  
 
But there is help and hope for you and your teenager. When you equip yourself with truth from the gospel and the rest of God’s Word, you can help your child to cope with anxiety, and your family can experience greater freedom and peace.     
 
 

Genres: Parenting, Nonfiction

144 pages, Paperback

Published August 6, 2019

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Jessica Thompson grew up in Southern California, the second child of Phil and Elyse Fitzpatrick.
When not homeschooling, Jessica helps her mother with correspondence and scheduling conferences and speaks at women’s conferences. In 2010, along with her mom, she collaborated on the book, “Give them Grace: Dazzling Your Kids with the Love of Jesus”, to be released by Crossway in Spring of 2011. A confirmed SoCal girl, Jessica loves the beach, daily walks and most of all her beloved San Diego Padres.

Reviews

[Nicole Bennett]

This is a book I will recommend and go back and reference a lot over the next ten years that I have ahead of me of parenting teens. I love how practical it is, how Jessica infused the gospel into everything, and how she takes a good, hard look at how the world, the church, and us as parents can bring more anxiety into our children’s lives. There’s so much here for the parent as well, for our own anxious thoughts and inclinations, and how we can apply the gospel to our own lives and identities.
Thank you, Harvest House for the the much-appreciated ARC.

[Lindsey Haro]

I really appreciated this book. I'm thankful for such a good resource to prepare my heart for when my girls do get into the teenage years. This book is very practical and ALSO so full of gospel truths. Anxiety is a really real issue and it's on the rise, especially in this younger generation. This book points out major things contributing to anxiety in the younger generation, from the world, from the church, and from us parents. This book also points to the gospel as our hope. We and our kids do not need to carry the burden that the world/church/others place on us, Christ has already lived the perfect life for us and died for our sins. I would recommend this book to anyone who regularly interacts with teenagers and I will likely read it again when my daughter's are older.

[Amy]

Walking through anxiety with your son or daughter can feel like a huge task especially when you struggle with it yourself. In this excellent book by Jessica Thompson, I found encouragement and help not only for my daughter but also for me as well. In her practical and engaging way, Jessica talks about how society, church, and even we as parents effect the anxiety within our kids. I found it so revealing how I add to my children's struggle with anxiety and it helped me better understand these pressures they face. Instead of being discouraged and hopeless after reading, I found encouragement and hope in both the good news of Jesus and His work for me and my children as well as in things I can do to better relate to my kids. I highly recommend this book to parents whether their kids strggle with anxiety of not because you will learn good questions to talk with them about and ways to even encourage them as they most likely have friends who struggle with anxiety. It's so easy to long for and look for quick and easy ways to deal with issues we face with our kids but I am grateful for books like "How to Help your Anxious Teen" that deal with particular issues with wisdom and with hope because of the goodness of Jesus! This book is one I will reference for both my children and I as we continue journeying together.

[Nancy Larimer]

"How to Help Your Anxious Teen" by Jessica Thompson is a practical book. She shared all the causes of anxiety in our world, the church, the family. She shared how social media contributes to anxiety. If a teen looks at social media and realizes that they were not invited to an event they may feel anxious. It is important to listen and not be judgmental. When you are non judgmental the teen feels more free to be open and honest about what is bothering them. The book also addresses the factors in the church that cause anxiety. Teens may also feel pressured to perform and it is not easy to meet others expectations. She also addresses how different parenting styles can make a teen anxious. This book is very helpful and practical with good Christian input. I appreciate the publisher for allowing me to read and review this book. I am not obligated to give a positive review.

[Mindy Shaw]

Jessica Thompson is one of my favorite authors when it comes to parenting my kids. She’s taught me to give them grace, how to talk to them about sex, and now she’s helping me navigate anxiety, all while reminding me of my hope and security in Christ. And she’s hilarious. Even if your kids are young, I recommend this book. Note: if you have a child who has a diagnosis of anxiety, this book will only be a starting point, but so much of what she addresses about being a safe place for your child and counter-acting all the pressures that church, society, and even us as parents, put on our kids is necessary and helpful to all parenting situations.

[Karla Rose]

I don’t have teens

I don’t have teens, but I experience anxiety and have young kids, and I really appreciate the time and thought that has been put into this resource. The topics Jessica has discussed throughout this book has helped me view my own anxious reactions in new ways and I believe it has set me up for success in dealing with my children’s anxieties. Though this book is designed with the intention of helping anxious teens the lessons within can easily be adjusted to give ourselves grace as anxiety sufferers and to support younger children experiencing anxiety symptoms. It was a great read with Christ at center, and I am glad to have had access to it.

[Em (Makenna)]

I received an arc of this book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

After reading this, I think I could have honestly skipped most of the book. What I liked was that they included the church as a stressor, which I 100% agree that it can be and most of the time is.

[Jaime Wolter]

I recommend this book to everyone regardless if they have teenagers or not. It was very helpful for my own soul. I do, however, have two teenage daughters and I found this book a great resource in parenting them with grace.

[Melissa Nickerson]

I found part 3 to be most helpful...”How you contribute to your teen’s anxiety.” Instead of methodology she reminds parents to rest in Christ.

Now I want to read “How to Raise an Adult” which she quotes!

[Kerry Pickens]

This is a Christian perspective on parenting teens, and I didn't find that it particularly was relevant or added any new information.

[Tara]

Biblical help for parents of teens or youth leaders. Recent statistics show 51% of teens reporting anxiety. Jessica shares the hope of the gospel for anxious hearts.

[Lisa Albright]

How to Help Your Anxious Teen is a very useful guide to understanding the reasons behind a teenager's angst and varoous ways to help them. The writer seems to have an excellent knowledge base about this subject and offers practical advice from a Christian standpoint. It is well written and easy to read with clearly marked chapters so you can find what you're looking for quickly. I would recommend this book to new parents hoping to avoid anxiety pitfalls if possible, current parents of teens, grandparents, teachers and anyone working closely with this age group. You never know when this information could help you change another's life for the better.

[Sarah Poling]

This book scratches the surface of the types of anxiety most people have and the authors response is to teach and train our teens that we aren’t good enough. Perfect. ...we are broken sinners needing a Holy God to find any good in all we do. She shares the the local body of believers and the church (pastor, leaders) contribute to anxiety often. She shares gospel driven responses and supports for your teen, but I have found that in some cases of anxiety with physical responses- this is a needed tool, but not enough to ease the anxiety and help them think.

I have a teen with real anxiety. He will sleep after being corrected or given an expectation he feels is unfair. He has hyperventilated to the point of passing out over fear. He can’t begin to explain that this is all connected and anxiety driven. I was very disappointed that this book really offered very little to me.

Partnered with net galley to read an arc.

[Chelsi]

So much yes.

This was not your run of the mill fix it all book. This book gives understanding and encouragement, and most importantly points consistently to grace and identity in Christ. Addressing the issues that contribute to teen anxiety, from the church to my own parenting has been a real eye opener. I would highly recommend this read.

[Jeffrey Bush]

If you have teens, this is a must read! Every parent wants to help their children, this is a great way to understand and know how to help your teens!

[Mary]

Really eye-opening discourse into the psyche of teenagers. Using a multitude of scripture, the author explains not only the difference between stress and anxiety but more-so how parents respond to their teenager whenever dealing with their ups and downs. The examples given made sense to me and even though my children are nearing their 40s, I still can improve upon how I approach times when they need to talk and I need to listen. Does not give easy answers but mainly that we take time for self-reflection. I feel this book will be a tremendous help to any parent who needs support in supporting their children during their teen years.
I received an arc from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.