Description
Many teen girls feel pressured to be nice, rather than assert their opinions. They may fear being called bossy or pushy when speaking their mind or offering a different point of view. If you have ever stopped yourself from expressing your opinion, you know how bad it can feel afterward. Don’t let yourself fall into that same trap over and over. Your thoughts and feelings matter just as much as everyone else’s—you just need to find your voice.
Express Yourself offers skills based in dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) to help you create positive interactions with others and deal with difficult emotions that can arise from bullying or dealing with mean girls. The book also provides easy-to-use strategies that will boost your self-esteem and confidence, and you’ll discover tons of assertive communication skills you can use every day, including how to speak up when you are upset, asking for what you want in a clear assertive manner, and coping when intense emotions threaten to take over and sabotage your relationships.
In our modern world of social media and texting, strong communication skills are needed more than ever. This book will not only give you the tools needed to speak up in everyday or difficult situations, but it will also provide powerful advice for effectively communicating in the digital world.
Editorial Reviews
“Emily Roberts’s Express Yourself nails the beauty and complexity of girl’s world. This much-needed book is packed full of wisdom to help young women navigate and normalize their teen years with bravery and confidence.”
— Julia V. Taylor, MA, author of The Body Image Workbook for Teens, Salvaging Sisterhood, and Perfectly You, and coauthor of G.I.R.L.S. (Girls in Real Life Situations) and The Bullying Workbook for Teens
“Emily Roberts has created a manual that can be useful to every adolescent girl. This book fills a void for girls struggling to manage difficult interpersonal relationships, and provides essential strategies for improving these relationships, as well as managing emotions during the challenging transition of adolescence. This is a great resource for adolescents, as well as for parents and professionals.”
— Dr. Drew Pinsky
“Understanding, responding to, and managing social relationships can be complicated for teenagers. In Express Yourself, Emily Roberts breaks down the barriers with actionable tips and advice every teen needs. From e-mail etiquette to social media and dating, Roberts offers sage advice teens can relate to. Written for teens yet valuable for parents, this is a coffee table book to leave around your home in the event your teen needs guidance she is hesitant to seek from you. Confused? Frustrated? Overwhelmed? Afraid? Just ask Emily. Then Express Yourself.”
— Lynne Kenney, PsyD, mom to two teens, pediatric psychologist, international speaker, and coauthor of Bloom: 50 Things to Say, Think, and Do with Anxious, Angry, and Over-the-Top Kids
“Emily Roberts’s Express Yourself is the ideal combination of humor, real talk, and research from which every girl can benefit. This book reminds young women of their power and influence, all while providing tried and true strategies for how to be the happiest, healthiest, best versions of themselves. It’s fun, practical, and most definitely worth the read.”
— Lexie Kite, PhD, codirector of Beauty Redefined Foundation
“Express Yourself is exactly what the confidence conversation needs. With its great communication tools, helpful and rewarding exercises, and abundant opportunities for self-reflection, this book offers teens the tools they need to tackle life and all the obstacles that come with it.”
— Jess Weiner, author and self-esteem expert
“In short, Express Yourself is excellent. Roberts provides practical skills and assertiveness-building exercises for teen girls—an audience who so desperately needs more voices telling them how to effectively stand up for themselves and why it’s important to do so. Any girl who reads this will walk away with new positive communication techniques to implement in her life.”
— Ami Kane, MPA, development director at the Girls Empowerment Network (GENaustin)
“Express Yourself feels like a conversation with someone who really gets you—that wise and compassionate friend whose advice is always on target. It serves as a road map for teens to learn to take up space with their voice. That is a concept society works very hard to get girls to unlearn, but thankfully Roberts created a phenomenal guide to keep them in the practice of speaking their truth. Parents and educators will find this book to be a wonderful resource for the girls they care about as they transition into outspoken, confident young women.”
— Melissa Atkins Wardy, speaker, consultant, business owner, and author of Redefining Girly
About the Author
Emily Roberts, MA, LPC, is not your average psychotherapist. She splits her time between working in New York City and Austin, Texas. She has positioned herself as both a mental health expert and liaison between girls and their parents, with an emphasis on healthy and effective communication skills. She created The Guidance Girl as a brand to help girls, women, and parents feel confident and gain the skills they need to live happy and healthy lives.
Emily is aware of the challenges faced by both teens and women, and has built a practice by positioning herself as therapeutic mentor and consultant. Emily is a media contributor and is a regular guest on HLN’s Dr. Drew on Call, educational speaker, author of several blogs and articles including HealthyPlace.com’s Building Self-Esteem Neurogistics Corporation. You will find Emily leading groups for girls as young as five and as old as 40, as well as parents and educators on topics including: technology, self-esteem, trauma, dialectical behavior therapy skills (DBT), confidence, leadership, friendship skills, and stress reduction activities with an emphasis on creating healthy boundaries with technology. Roberts’ book, Express Yourself, is winner of a Foreword Reviews‘ 2015 INDIEFAB Book of the Year Award for Young Adult Nonfiction.
Foreword writer Jennifer L. Hartstein, PsyD, is the owner of Hartstein Psychological Services, a group psychotherapy practice in New York, NY. Hartstein works with children, adolescents, and families with a wide range of psychological diagnoses, and specializes in the treatment of high-risk children and adolescents. She has received intensive training in adolescent suicide assessment, and has specialized in this population for several years, using a variety of treatment approaches, including dialectical behavior therapy (DBT). She is on the advisory board for MTV’s A Thin Line, which focuses on the digital behaviors of today’s young people. Additionally, she is a psychological contributor for NBC’s Today Show, as well as other national news outlets. Hartstein is author of Princess Recovery: A How-To Guide to Raising Strong, Empowered Girls Who Can Create Their Own Happily Ever Afters.