The fallout from COVID-19 continues to affect our lives in ways both expected and unexpected. For teens, physically isolated from peers and unable to go to school, the toll is obvious. School can be a vital source of regular meals, access to caring, attentive adults, as well as technology not available at home. Millions of high school seniors have been eagerly anticipating their final month of bonding with friends before everyone is launched into the world, not to mention dreaming of graduation day. Social distancing means that access to support groups and therapists may have vanished right at a time when anxiety, depression, stress, and grief are at an all-time high. The financial impact on so many families’ incomes exacerbates all these concerns. Here are some books that may offer guidance and comfort and help teens feel less alone.
Rewire Your Anxious Brain for Teens: Using CBT, Neuroscience, and Mindfulness To Help You End Anxiety, Panic, and Worry by Debra Kissen, Ashley D. Kendall, Micah Ioffe, and Michelle Lozano (Instant Help Books, April 1) offers a thorough introduction to anxiety: what it is in neurological terms, along with practical exercises and tips for lessening its impact. The book’s relatively short length and accessible tone make it an excellent choice for those who may not have access to real-life professional support or who wish to supplement it.
Katie Henry’s Let’s Call It a Doomsday (Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins, 2019) is a touching, respectful novel about a young white woman, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whose anxiety interferes with many aspects of daily living. In particular, she is fixated on the impending end of the world—and the new friend she believes knows how and when the end times will unfold. Far from bleak, this is a story that humanizes the struggles many live with and shows the importance of unconditionally loving family and friends.
Combating stigma around mental health challenges is critical as a first step to encouraging people to seek the help they need. Readers will come away fromHeads Up: Changing Minds on Mental Health, written by Melanie Siebert and illustrated by Belle Wuthric (Orca, April 21), better understanding the broader context (including the impact of various forms of marginalization), treatment avenues to explore, and—perhaps most critically—the comforting realization that they are not alone. This valuable resource is compact yet unusually inclusive.
Who Put This Song On? by Morgan Parker (Delacorte, 2019) focuses on a high school student whose depression and anxiety are inextricably intertwined with the stresses of being a black girl in a mostly white suburb. Parker drew on her own life to create an unexpectedly hilarious novel that is filled with heart and imbued with the small, telling details and texture that can only come from lived experience. The result is a story that is relatable to those who critically need this representation and broadly appealing—after all, who hasn’t made it through high school without experiencing feelings of alienation?
Rae Earl is beloved for her hilarious teen fiction, but readers may not be aware of her history of grappling with mental health. In Your Brain Needs a Hug: Life, Love, Mental Health, and Sandwiches (Imprint, 2019) she shares her own experiences, tips from a mental health expert, and a variety of resources, including apps, books, and a playlist. The power of adult role models who don’t minimize the difficulties yet show that one can live successfully with mental illness cannot be underestimated.
Laura Simeon is the young adult editor.
