Emotions! Making Sense of Your Feelings

Mary Lamia, PhD

ISBN-13: 978-1433811937

Teens Social Issues

August 2012

146 pages

About the Book:

From the back cover:

Emotions are a powerful and extraordinary part of being human. Your emotions serve as an instant cueing system to inform you about situations and motivate you to take action.  Anxiety can sharpen your focus and direct your attention.  Pride can lead you to take on something new and challenging.  Guilt can motivate you to correct situations that interfere with your relationships.  All of your emotions are valuable – they inform you, affect the decisions you make, and can motivate you to reach your goals.

Emotions! Making Sense of Your Feelings will help you gain powerful insight into a significant part of who you are.  While your emotional life may feel tumultuous, your emotions are priceless.  It’s time to figure out just what your emotions are telling you!

My Review:

I first discovered Dr. Mary Lamia while I was doing research for my upcoming book on bullying (check my blog post on Monday for an update on this topic).  Honestly, i believe I googled the phrase “bullying expert” and sent emails to about five different people.  Dr. Lamia was one of the three who was gracious enough to respond.  She was more than gracious to answer my questions on the motivations behind bullying and even offered to send me a copy of her upcoming book. I was pleasantly surprised when Emotions!: Making Sense of Your Feelings arrived in my mailbox.

My son, Bud, has struggled with anxiety and depression for many years (see Bud’s Black Days, I Couldn’t Sleep At All Last Night).  Recently, through the right mix of medication and learning how to deal appropriately with his emotions, he has grown into an enjoyable and responsible young man. I wish that Dr. Lamia’s book had been available when Bud was first diagnosed.  It might have helped us all make it through the process more easily.

One of the best things about this book is it is a really remarkable reference that you can keep in your library for your teenagers, young adults (even you, yourself) to go to anytime they are unsure of what they are feeling.  Dr. Lamia writes in the introduction:

You don’t necessarily have to read this book cover to cover.  Depending on what you’re experiencing, you can choose a chapter that resonates with you.

There’s a chapter for each emotion. Included are:

Each chapter includes:

1. a definition and real life example of the emotion, backed by research studies
   anxiety over a big test
2. Ways that the emotion can be positive
   anxiety over a test can motivate you to make sure you are well-prepared
3. Ways the emotion can be negative
   anxiety can become chronic worry
4. Summary and conclusion
5. What’s It to You? – hints for dealing with your emotions
   deep breathing, exercise to burn off excess energy

I found this book to be very helpful (even for me) in identifying emotions.  I especially liked the What’s It to You? sections of the chapters.  This book is geared towards older teenagers and young adults, but how many of us are in touch with all our emotions all the time?  I think this book would be an asset to any home.

My rating:

I give Emotions! Making Sense of Your Feelings five smiley faces!!!  A must read!!!

I was given a complimentary copy of this book for the purposes of review.  All opinions are 100% my own.