Lemons or Lemonade? : An Anger Workbook for Teens

Teens get angry. Anger is normal and natural. When expressed appropriately, anger is a means of communication and builds relationships. When combined with physical and verbal aggression, however, anger is destructive. This workbook is for young people 13 and older who express their anger in ways that harm others, themselves, animals, and personal property. The workbook is especially helpful for teens who have experienced complex trauma and are hurt, angry, and bereft as a result. Adults can use the exercises in this workbook to guide teens to deal constructively with the sources of their anger and to guide them to prosocial ways of expressing anger and other emotions associated with their anger.

Jane F. Gilgun, PhD, LICSW, is a professor, School of Social Work, University of Minnesota,
Twin Cities, USA. 

 I have worked with families and children for many years. I learned a lot from them, especially how complicated anger can be when people don't learn at young ages how to express it constructively. In the families I has worked with, anger almost always was the tip of an iceberg, covering up many strong negative emotions, such as hurt, sadness, fear, self-hatred, and almost anything bleak you can think of. Often people with serious anger issues
have unattended trauma in their backgrounds.

 Anger can be constructive, can open channels of communication, and can deepen and strengthen relationships. Left unexpressed, anger picks up many other meanings untilthe mass of hurt, rage, sadness, and fear threatens quality of life.

I have many articles and books for parents and professionals that are available on the Internet, many of them free and all low cost. I worked at a public Rhode Island child welfare social service agency for several years and then became a professor.

I have many videos on YouTube that include the landscapes in Northwest Ireland, trail riding in Minnesota and elsewhere, horse racing, pig racing, and more. My interests include my horses, Padron's Elegante (Ellie) and Finn MacCool, who are mother and son, gardening, photography, cooking, the arts, and spending time in County Leitrim and County Sligo, Ireland.

I have a Ph.D. from Syracuse University in child and family studies and other graduate degrees from the University of Chicago in social service administration and from the Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium, in family studies and sexuality. I also have a bachelor's and master's in English (poetry) from the Catholic University of America and the University of Rhode Island. I am a professor, School of Social Work, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, USA, and a licensed independent clinical social worker.