Social Anxiety Relief for Teens

September 1, 2021
Many teens suffer from social anxiety, sometimes leading to an almost paralyzing fear of interacting with their peers. This volume offers detailed instructions for developing a self-help cognitive behavior therapy program for coping with these issues. Walker provides brief descriptions of a few teens who are afflicted with social anxiety and presents their results as they navigate their way through the steps of the therapy. Readers are prompted to assess their levels of anxiety, recognize their current avoidance and safety behaviors, identify all of the situations that typically distress them, and rate the level of anxiety associated with each type of situation. This involves creating detailed paper or online index cards that will provide guidance for their behavior therapy. Armed with all of this new information, teens are encouraged to regard their target encounters as rungs on a ladder, tackling the least stressful ones first by making predictions of outcomes and then deliberately exposing themselves to the feared situations and tracking outcomes. The somewhat complex steps are not always provided in order. Sometimes concepts are briefly introduced but only fully explained in following chapters. Troublingly, even though the teens portrayed often display extreme levels of anxiety resulting in alienation from peers, there's no information offered on suicidal ideation or specific resources for those experiencing such desperation. Could at least jump-start needed conversations. (resources, references) (Nonfiction. 12-18)

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February 1, 2022

Gr 8 Up-Through scenarios and step-by-step lists, licensed clinical psychologist Walker provides an accessible guide to teens struggling with social anxiety disorder. While some of the scenarios may feel a bit out of touch to a teenager, the cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) guidelines are solid and offer actionable steps for young people. This title reads differently than other books currently available on the topic of anxiety because it introduces readers to techniques and scenarios in an effort to begin the conversation about mental health. One caveat to the book is that there did not appear to be any notes encouraging teens experiencing anxiety to seek out a trusted adult or a therapist to work with; the tools within this book are a great jumping-off point, but it is important to note that CBT is usually done in a therapeutic setting to ensure there are not larger issues that may require one-on-one counseling or even medication. VERDICT An accessible and actionable guide for teenagers struggling with anxiety that provides tools as well as clinical resources. A welcome addition to any library that serves teenagers, especially those in which access to mental health resources are lacking.-Katherine Forsman

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