Brainstorm: The Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain

Siegel, Daniel J., M.D.

ISBN 10: 1480560235 ISBN 13: 9781480560239

Publisher: Brilliance Audio, 2014

Synopsis

“Dr. Siegel aptly characterizes the teen years as the most powerful life phase for activating courage, purpose, and creativity. With his usual personal and compassionate delivery, he illustrates how we can all become more aware, empathetic, and understanding of teenagers and ourselves. A visionary and a guide, Siegel knows that if we treat teenagers with the respect and understanding they deserve, they are more likely to live up to their greatest capacities.” —Laura S. Kastner, clinical professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, University of Washington, and author of Wise-Minded Parenting: 7 Essentials for Raising Successful Tweens + Teens

Between the ages of twelve and twenty-four, the brain changes in important and, at times, challenging ways. InBrainstorm, the renowned psychiatrist and bestselling author of Parenting from the Inside Out,The Whole-Brain Child, and Mindsight, Daniel Siegel busts a number of commonly held myths about adolescence—for example, that it is merely a stage of “immaturity” filled with often “crazy” behavior—to reveal how it is in fact a vital time in our lives in terms of charting the course for the adults we ultimately become. According to Siegel, during adolescence we learn important skills, such as how to leave home and enter the larger world, how to connect deeply with others, and how to safely experiment and take risks, thereby creating strategies for dealing with the world’s increasingly complex problems.

Siegel presents listeners with an inside-out approach to focusing on how brain development affects our behavior and relationships. Drawing on important new research in the field of interpersonal neurobiology, he explores exciting ways in which understanding how the brain functions can improve the lives of adolescents, making their relationships more fulfilling and less lonely and distressing on both sides of the generational divide.

In this groundbreaking audiobook, Siegel offers teens and parents a road map for understanding the adolescent mind that will help families not just survive but also thrive through the “teenage years” and beyond.

About this title

Review

Brainstorm is eye-opening and inspiring, a great gift to us all―teens, parents of teens, and anyone who wants a full and rich life on this planet. Daniel Siegel shows how the supposed downsides of the teen years all have upsides, and that the lessons for living that await teens are ones any of us, at any age, can learn from. Teens and their parents stand to benefit immensely from reading this book, separately or together.

(Daniel Goleman, author of *Emotional Intelligence*)

At last a book that really explains adolescence! ‘You just don’t get me’ is a common refrain from teenagers to their parents and teachers. Adolescents who read this book will discover that Daniel Siegel gets them. My favourite thing about this book is that Siegel sees adolescence not as a problem to be solved or a hardship to be endured, but rather as a wellspring of courage and creativity. This respectfulness is why the book works so well as a manual for adolescents, as well as their parents and mentors.

(Lawrence J. Cohen, author of *The Opposite of Worry* and *Playful Parenting*)

Siegel gives us a fresh and insightful examination of adolescence from his point of view as an expert on the brain. The book also shows him to be a thoughtful parent, a compassionate guide and a very fine writer. I strongly recommend Brainstorm to teens and to those who care about them.

(Mary Pipher, author of *Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls* and *The Green Boat: Reviving Ourselves in Our Capsized Culture*)

Brainstorm is a necessary look at why adolescents do what they do that can put parents in an emotional frenzy. The information that Dr Dan Siegel shares is not only invaluable for understanding your growing child's brain, but helps build more compassion and patience. A gift for us all.

(Goldie Hawn)

'Brainstorm is a must read book for every parent if they want to avoid emotional turbulence in their own lives as their children go through adolescence. It’s lifesaving for the whole family.'

(Deepak Chopra, MD)

This book is filled with validation, vision, and clarity to help us navigate the seas of an often overwhelming time in life ― the teenage years. This book is chock-full of cutting-edge knowledge as well as a deep compassion for teenagers, the adults they will become, and the teenagers in all of us.

(Alanis Morissette)

‘Warm-hearted, respectful, and comprehensive ... I have not seen anything to match it as a resource for thinking parents of teens.’

(Steve Biddulph)

'For many parents, understanding the teenage years is a little like trying to pick up mercury with a fork. In Brainstorm, the great Dan Siegel takes the mystery out of the train crash that is adolescence. This is essential reading for every parent and every worker with young people in health, education and welfare.'

(Dr Michael Carr-Gregg)

'An enlightening but straightforward read for parents of teens, or teens themselves.'

(The Weekend West)

About the Author

Daniel J. Siegel, MD, received his medical degree from Harvard University and completed his postgraduate medical education at UCLA, where he is currently a clinical professor. He is the executive director of the Mindsight Institute, and the author of numerous books, including the acclaimed bestsellers Mindsight: change your brain and your life and The Whole-Brain Child (co-authored with Tina Payne Bryson). He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and occasionally with his launched adolescents.

Edition details

• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Publication date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1480560235
• ISBN 13: 9781480560239
• Binding: MP3 CD