"At last, here's a source of reliable, real-world advice for parents of teenagers battling depression. Too often parents of depressed teens are give false reassurance--told that moodiness and self-imposed isolation are normal aspects of adolescence. But Helping Your Teenager Beat Depression, co-written by a psychiatrist at Toronto's renowned Hospital for Sick Children, tells parents how to get help--and how to work with a physician or psychotherapist.

Central to the book is the so-call L.E.A.P. approach: Helping parents Label their own emotions...Empathize and Explore responses...Apply new ways to respond...and Pick and Plan the most appropriate ways to interact with the depressed teen.

Therapists may find it hard to hang onto this book: the day it arrived in my office, two clients asked to borrow it. Guess I'll pick up a few more copies."
--ADDitude Magazine, June/July 2005

"The authors' practical approach helps parents learn about cognitive-behavioral therapy, the most proven treatment for adolescent mood problems. Moreover, the authors teach parents how to empathically join with depressed teenagers to improve their problem-solving using their own unique 'L.E.A.P.' approach. Many parents will find the exercises and examples quite useful."
--John Hamilton, M.D., M.Sc.
Chair, Adolescent Psychiatry Committee,
American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry

"This book helped me take a positive, active role in my child's recovery from depression. I felt empowered after going through the exercises in this book. It is a wonderful resource for parents."
--Debby, mother of 11-year-old boy with depression
Toronto, Canada

"Why do depressed teens get angry? 'Probably because anger doesn't feel so bad,' explains Katharina Manassis, MD, FRCPC and Anne Marie Levac, RN, MN, in Chapter 10 (p. 95) of Helping Your Teenager Beat Depression.

Manassis and Levac explain how anger and other negative emotions make one feel 'strong not vulnerable, like fear or sadness'(p. 95), and address how teens get to this point and how parents can help them out.

The advice and problem-solving strategies in this paperback are based on a form of cognitive-behavioral therapy the authors call L.E.A.P. (1) LABELing their own thoughts and emotions regarding their teen's behavior; (2) empathizing with their teen's perspective and exploring options for response; (3) applying an alternative way to respond, and (4) picking a follow up time to think through the process and PLAN the next steps.

The workbook-style format is user-friendly and invites parents to respond to situational roadblocks with this clearly-outlined process. Clearly-defined, eye-catching boxes highlight key points; checklists help readers identify and write their own responses to behaviors. Situational problem-solving tips are included as are exercises for changing unhealthy patterns: dealing with anxious situation: improving habits, causes and treatments of depression; seeking professional help for your teen; discussing what is normal for adolescents dealing with school and peers, and the importance of activity/getting teens moving.

There is empathy and encouragement for parents as well as teens throughout the pages. The authors provide parents with a checklist of what to expect at each step when seeking professional counseling and mental health assessments--including, what conditions need to be ruled out, what happens after assessments, worst-case scenarios, deciding if medications are right for your teen, side effects, school avoidance, bullies, and peer pressure. Chapter 13 anticipates and addresses the ripple effect in families of depressed teens: Talking About Depression (pp. 128-129), What Should a Parent Who is Depressed Do? (pp. 129-130), and Parenting Despite Depression (p. 132).

The combined author education and experience bring a wide range of depth to this publication. Anyone who parents, works with, or teaches teens may find the insights and suggestions in this book helpful.

The publisher's use of extra-large print for paragraph topics and key points are helpful. However, the two-tone fractured shading for the page numbers creates reading challenges. The publisher's choice of various shades of pinks, with a photo of a lone young girl for the book cover will catch the eye of parents of teen girls. The chance taken here is that this insightful book may go unnoticed--or dismissed by parents of young males."
-The Review of Disability Studies; An International Journal, Volume 2, issue 3

"Manassis and Levac have created an invaluable step-by-step guide for parents based on an empirically-supported cognitive-behavioral approach. Easy to use with an abundance of real-life examples, parents will find this book to be a rich source of strategies to assist them in managing their adolescent's moods more effectively."
--Jennifer L. Hudson, Ph.D.
Department of Psychology, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia
President, Child and Adolescent Anxiety Disorders Special Interest Group of the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy

"Manassis and Levac offer a solid way to stem the epidemic of mood disorders in adolescents. Based on a cognitive behavioral therapy approach, this treatment method is recommended for early intervention without medication and as an ancillary treatment for teens undergoing medication trials and/or psychotherapy. Useful for all families of teens and for public, school, and medical libraries."
-Disability Resources Online, 2006