Book Review: The Available Parent by John Duffy

Retail Price: $15.95
Trade paper
ISBN 978-1-57344-657-0
5 1/2 x 8 1/4, 252 pages
 

Summary:

Embrace Fearless Parenting

Have you ever been bewildered by the changes in your child and your sudden lack of effectiveness as a parent? When hugs and family fun have been replaced by silence, slamming doors and an ever-changing array of moods, you need new tools. Top teen expert Dr. John Duffy has encountered all of this and more in his family counseling practice and offers excellent advice, clear strategies and teen-tested solutions in The Available Parent.

Dr. Duffy can help you shift the dynamic in your relationship with your teenager. Imagine what it would be like if healthy conversations replaced angry outbursts or petulant silence. Using the techniques in The Available Parent, you can begin to enjoy a healthy, satisfying, new kind of relationship with your teenager—one based on a foundation of radical optimism, rather than fear-based control. At a time when many "helicopter parents" micromanage and under-appreciate their children, Dr. Duffy's step-by-step guide is an innovative approach to taking care of teens and tweens. You'll see that it's the available parent that fosters an extraordinary teenager.

What you'll learn inside this book:

♦ How to understand the adolescent mind
♦ What teen rebellion is really about
♦ How to build your child's self-esteem and confidence
♦ How to create a successful behavioral contract

Check out John Duffy's YouTube Channel with segments on The Available Parent.


My Review:


Even though my daughter is only young, I make it a point to pick up and read books that will help me to raise her the best way I know how.  After reading this book myself, I passed it along to a few friends who had tweens and teenagers, and waited to see what they thought of the book.  My friends all said that this was a very resourceful book and had many great parenting tips that implemented.  They especially loved the section on creating a successful behavioral contract.

A big headache when raising tweens and teenagers is the rebellious state they go through.  One of the moms found the chapter on teen rebellion very useful and even made a copy of the section for herself to reference.

After hearing rave reviews about this book from friends of tweens and teens, I will definitely revisit this book when Savannah and her new sister get to be that age.  It will be good to have a great resource like this at my fingertips to help make parenting a little easier.

If you are parent of a tween or tween, and are looking for a book that will help you minimize conflict with your child, then this is a must read book.


About the Author:

JOHN DUFFY is a clinical psychologist and certified life coach with a thriving private practice in the Chicago area. Dr. Duffy works with both teens and adults and specializes in helping parents maximize satisfaction and minimize conflict in their relationships with their teenagers. In addition to clinical work, Duffy also consults with individuals, groups and corporations in a number of areas, including Emotional Intelligence, stress management, balancing work and family, conflict resolution, goal-setting and the power of thoughts in bringing about change. Dr. Duffy's highly satisfied clients include Sears, Allstate, General Electric, Household Financial, Exxon Mobil, Accenture, Bank of America and Hewitt Associates. The Duffy family lives in Chicago, Illinois.

Disclosure:  I was sent a copy of this book by the publisher in order to write up an honest review.  The views above are mine and mine alone.