Adolescence is a time of change and growth. It is the period of life for self-discovery, but as the demands in life increase for teens, this time is often fraught with confusion, anxiety or depression. For many teens these challenges lead to disconnection and isolation.
This course, Mindful Self-Compassion for Teens (MSC-T), is designed to facilitate awareness, self-kindness and an understanding of our common humanity in response to these growing challenges. In this 8-week long course, which meets weekly for 1.5 hours, teens engage in developmentally appropriate activities and carefully crafted practices and meditations, which provide them with the opportunity to learn how to navigate the emotional ups and downs of life with greater ease.
This course creates an opportunity for adolescents to construct a healthier way of relating to themselves. Backed by empirical research, this program demonstrates a significant decrease in depression, anxiety, perceived stress and negative mood. The curriculum was adapted from the adult Mindful Self-Compassion created by Kristin Neff and Christopher Germer, and has been endorsed by Neff and Germer.
“At long last, a self-compassion training for teens! This delightful, innovative program captures the essence of self-compassion for an age group that needs it the most. Wholeheartedly recommended!”
“This is a brilliant adaptation of the MSC program for adolescents, providing a wide variety self-compassion skills using developmentally appropriate language and activities. Imagine if all teens learned self-compassion early on – so much unnecessary suffering would be prevented! Thank goodness this program is now available.”
““It’s cool to see after we took [the class] how much life in general has improved, like not necessarily the situations, but the ways I can handled it. This is so important, so I’m going to take it again and then maybe make it even better.””
““Stressful situations and stuff happens… I’m able to handle it more easily and more quickly, and able to calm myself down and put it into perspective.””
““My child loved this class from the first night. He told me about a guided meditation where he was to imagine his perfect friend in a perfect place – that really hit a chord and made him tear up. He wasn’t that excited about going before that – I think he was going because I told him he should – but that first night he was immediately hooked. Every day he told me ‘it was great!””
““My daughter absolutely was dreading attending. By the end, she was really upset that she couldn’t be there for Tuesday night due to travel. She LOVED it.””