Stress Less: A Teen's Guide to a Calm Chill Life

Let’s get real. Stress is part of every teen’s life―stress of exams, college applications, a big game, difficult teachers, difficult friends, parents who don’t always get you, not to mention the dating and social scenes. Stress like this tends to build over time―week after week―and takes a toll on your mental health.

But, great news! Learning stress-busting skills doesn’t take much time at all. Just 20 minutes a day is probably all it takes. The skills in this book are easy to learn and can be practiced anywhere―on the bus, before bed, or during lunch. Once you see that it helps, you’ll adjust and be ready bust more stress. And then before you realize it―you’ve got it!

Written by cognitive-behavioral therapist and stress-busting expert, Michael A. Tompkins, PhD, this book teaches concrete skills for managing stress and anxiety, organized into “stress domains” such as family, friends, dating, school, and tech/media. And because stress doesn’t go away when teens hit adulthood, Stress Less will help readers maintain balance and calm as they deal with the ups and downs of life in the months and years to come.

Michael A. Tompkins, PhD, ABPP, is a licensed psychologist and board certified in behavioral and cognitive psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology. He is the codirector and cofounder of the San Francisco Bay Area Center for Cognitive Therapy, assistant clinical professor at the University of California at Berkeley, and an adjunct faculty member for the Beck Institute for Cognitive Behavior Therapy. He is the author or coauthor of 12 books, including Zero to Sixty: A Teen’s Guide to Manage Frustration, Anger, and Everyday Irritations (2020) and My Anxious Mind: A Teen’s Guide to Managing Anxiety and Panic (with Katherine Martinez) (2010), which is a Magination Press bestseller and included in the Reading Well for Young People initiative sponsored by the Wellcome Trust, London, United Kingdom. Dr. Tompkins serves on the advisory board of Magination Press. He lives in Oakland, California. Visit him at San Francisco Bay Area Center for Cognitive Therapy and on Twitter.