I would, but MY DAMN MIND won't let me! for Teen Boys

My son who usually prefers YouTube videos and video games couldn't put this book down. He told me many times that "this author gets it." He read me his favorite passages and we had the most interesting and in-depth conversations. It really helped my son understand himself and helped me to understand him better. Highly recommend.

I would but My Damn Mind won't let me: A Young Man's Guide to Understanding His Thoughts and Feelings, is a brilliant book, which by all accounts, should be included in school curriculums as required reading for all teens. In the first part of the book, Jacqui Letran talks to the reader in a very real and intimate sense, presenting the functionality of how the mind works and how it stores memories, good and bad, and how, in a very real sense, the subconscious mind kicks back on the individual, bringing about feelings of doubt, anxiety, stress, depression, anger, lack of self-esteem and confidence and more. For anyone, not only teens, this book is an eye-opener, a practical and simple lay-out of how the mind works both for us and against us in our daily lives. In the second part of the book, the author presents real case-histories to illuminate the points presented earlier in the book. These are excellent and relevant. Teens are already struggling with new dynamics as they approach adulthood, and generally speaking, the educational system does a poor job of educating them on this very important aspect of their lives. Again, this book should be a part of school curriculums, because with it, teens would have a far better chance of successfully negotiating the personal hurdles they face as they prepare to take the leap into the world. An excellent read and recommended to anyone.

Great book for anyone who has a son experiencing mental health problems or needs a source to write down their thoughts.

Great information and hopefully going to help my teen boy!

I would, but MY DAMN MIND won't let me! Helping Young Men Understand Their Thoughts and Feelings

I would, but MY DAMN MIND won't let me! Helping Young Men Understand Their Thoughts and Feelings

My son thought the book was helpful to help him understand his mind.

I was skeptical about buying this book for my son because he’s not a big reader. He read this book in one weekend and asked me to order the companion workbook. He said it’s already helping him.

Thank you for writing this book! What I found most engaging was the way the book spoke to me as an adult as well. It was refreshing to read about thought and thought patterning that could be focused on anyone, not just teenage boys. I enjoyed the characters created to illustrate roles and behaviour. I especially love the explanation of the subconscious plan. It was continually referenced throughout the manuscript which I thought was brilliant as it reinforced the concept. I laughed about the mind being like a google search engine - ha! Great analogy and so on-point.

I decided to read this book with my 15 year old son, which was a fantastic idea. We read one to two chapters per evening and discussed each one afterwards. It was a great way to connect with him and we both learned so much! This book is wonderful not just for teens, but for people of all ages. We found the 60-Second Reader sections at the end of the chapters to be a great way to summarize and review each chapter. I highly recommend reading this book WITH your teen!
Jacqui and Joseph explain, in ways that make it easy to understand, how the mind works, how your feelings are affected by your thoughts and past experiences, and how your unique brain perceives and processes them. They offer techniques that are empowering. I noticed my son taking deep breaths today while closing his eyes when he was feeling overwhelmed and frustrated. He took the time to process his frustrations and was able to communicate with me in such a mature way afterwards.
I am so grateful to have had this experience and I will certainly recommend this book to others and purchase copies as gifts. I will be ordering the one for teen girls for my daughters who are in their young twenties. Thank you Jacqui & Joseph!

This book is loaded with lots of great information to help young men understand things about how their minds work, and provides resources to help them deal with behaviors that may be overwhelming for them and their loved ones. Highly recommended for young men and their loved ones to read to gain insight into how the brain works and how to understand it.

I highly recommend this book to anyone with a teen boy in their life. Its engaging for an adult, or teen to read and learn from. This books explanations of why we have our mindsets, how they can be negatively influenced, and how easily one can change their daily mindset is easy to understand. The science provided to further educate the reader is also detailed in a wonderfully simplistic way. As a parent and healthcare worker, I was engaged and learning from every paragraph. I am confident that my 15 year old son will as well. After reading this, I feel hopeful and excited to help support him with resetting his daily mindset to help manage his ADHD, and in his high level competitive athletics. I feel that this book would be beneficial for anyone with a preteen/teen boy in their life - parents, grandparents, teachers, sports coaches, etc. This book will help the teenage boy in your life, help himself.

I'm delighted to give high marks for this helpful book!

I’ve long suggested the original version to parents of adolescent girls, so I’m very happy that this much-needed new version for adolescent boys is now available. As a former teacher of teens and a personal counselor and coach, I'm sure adolescents of the male persuasion will greatly benefit from reading and discussing this new book with their parents. The included thought exercises will surely spark productive conversations about confusing feelings on the part of both parents and their offspring)!

From my experience teaching child and adolescent development, I know the teen brain is rewiring itself at light speed, so it's very difficult for young folks to understand what's happening inside their own psyches. “I Would But My Damn Mind Won’t Let Me” is structured in a way that will capture interest immediately and offer an entry point for conversation. It can be used as a catalyst for productive interactions as sons and parents read and discuss it together. Most helpful in my opinion will be the case studies, since stories about others are always good ice-breakers to get reluctant participants involved.

If I were the parent of a teen boy, I'd want to have this book in my arsenal of tools for myself - and for helping them navigate the rough road of evolving emotional regulation.

I was able to receive an advance copy of this book for Teen Boys, and I was very pleased with the way it flows and the relatable way it is written.

I have 4 sons, 3 are teens, and I shared some of the passages with them. My 3rd son, 15, is also reading it & I love how excited he gets while explaining to his brothers how the brain functions & how the book relates it to movies amd made it so easy to understand.

I hope to get more in depth with my boys, have them do the written exercises inside & see what they come up with.

I totally recommend this book for boys, whether they are having struggles or not. It's so insightful to break down the power of our mind and experiences & how you can take control with simple changes.