Do you ever have Really Big Feelings?
Meet Little Bear. He has a big heart, but some days are just plain rough. When he messes up or feels very out of sorts, he starts to wonder: Does that mean I'm bad?
Follow Little Bear as he discovers playful "ways to make things okay"-from taking deep breaths and hopping in puddles to snuggling with a loved one. These simple, soothing coping skills build the "I can do this!" confidence needed to handle life's tough stuff.
Written by psychologist and adoptee Mary Beth Leisen, PhD, I Am Always Enough is a heartwarming social-emotional learning (SEL) book that helps children dismantle the pain of "not enough" and replace it with unconditional self-worth. Through gentle rhymes and relatable moments, children learn to cultivate a growth mindset and manage difficult emotions.
A Vital Resource for Families, Educators, and Clinicians
This therapeutic story is a powerful tool for all children who struggle with worthiness and big feelings, but it is especially relevant for the adoption and foster care community, offering a trauma-informed bridge for healing and connection. It celebrates gentle parenting, attachment, and mindfulness for kids while providing a practical framework for building emotional resilience.
The book includes a simple guide for parents, teachers, and therapists to explore core themes, including:
- Unconditional Worth: Reassuring children they are loved for who they are, not how they behave-a critical reminder for children struggling with anxiety, anger or feelings of inadequacy.
- Normalizing Emotions: Helping children understand that "Big Feelings" like anger, sadness, and frustration are a normal part of the human experience. It's not the emotion that matters, but how we navigate it through emotional regulation.
- Building Resilience: Identifying and practicing "ways to make things okay" to foster lifelong inner strength, self-care, and self-compassion.
It's time to say goodbye to the weight of "not good enough." Join Little Bear to discover that no matter the mistake or the feeling, you are safe, accepted, and always enough-just as you are.
Mary Beth Leisen, PhD, is a psychologist, coach, and consultant. She specializes in supporting the adoption community through therapy, programs, and retreats. As an adoptee herself, Mary Beth wrote I Am Always Enough especially with adoptive families in mind, to give them the resource she wished her family had had as a child: a gentle and caring way to navigate big emotions together. Mary Beth lives near Boulder, Colorado, with her husband, Mark, and enjoys traveling, hiking, and exploring the wonders of nature.
Bruna Rezenda, born in Caxambu, Brazil, has always seen art as a form of expression. After earning a degree in psychology, she realized she could translate emotions not only into words, but also through color and lines. Today, she dedicates herself to children's illustration, creating enchanted worlds where small details tell great stories and imagination knows no limits.
