The Teenage Brain

A Neuroscientist's Survival Guide to Raising Adolescents and Young Adults

By: Frances E. Jensen, Amy Ellis Nutt

Narrated by: Tavia Gilbert, Frances E. Jensen

Length: 9 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's Summary

Drawing on her research, knowledge, and clinical experience, internationally respected neurologist--and mother of two boys--Frances E. Jensen, MD, offers a revolutionary look at the adolescent brain, providing remarkable insights that translate into practical advice both for parents and teenagers.

Driven by the assumption that brain growth was almost complete by the time a child reached puberty, scientists believed for many years that the adolescent brain was essentially an adult one--only with fewer miles on it. Over the last decade, however, neurology and neuroscience have revealed that the teen years encompass vitally important stages of brain development.

Motivated by her experience of parenting two teenagers, renowned neurologist Frances E. Jensen, MD, gathers what we've discovered about adolescent brain functioning and wiring and, in this groundbreaking, accessible audiobook, explains how these eye-opening findings not only dispel commonly held myths about teens but also yield practical suggestions for adults and teenagers negotiating the mysterious and magical world of adolescent biology.

Interweaving clear summary and analysis of research data with anecdotes drawn from her years as a clinician, researcher, and public speaker, Dr. Jensen explores adolescent brain functioning and development in the context of learning and multitasking, stress and memory, sleep, addiction, and decision making. Examining data connecting substance use to lingering memory issues and sometimes a lower adult IQ, The Teenage Brain explains why teenagers are not as resilient to the effects of drugs as we previously thought; reveals how multitasking impacts learning ability and concentration; and examines the consequences of stress on mental health during and beyond adolescence.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.

©2015 Frances E. Jensen with Amy Ellis Nutt (P)2015 HarperCollins Publishers

Preachy and Uninformative

A lot of self-congratulations in this book, and a lot of reassurance that teenagers aren't an alien species. Yes, we get it. They are not aliens.

If you've heard her interview with Teri Gross (on FreshAir), there's no more scientific content in the book. You've heard it all - and for free. Don't waste time and credits on this one.

Every page, another connection, more compassion

I am the father of eight children (ages 22-8). I am currently raising 4 teens and two twenties (plus 11,8). I am also an adjunct college professor, a faith formation teacher of 58 sophomores, and a high school soccer head coach with 41 boys. Every minute of this audible book was insightful. More than critique, which rarely has an impact on true transformation of any human of any age, we need to help the person under our guidance understand the "why". Ultimately the "why" feeds our "deepest yes" in life. Dr Jensen's work does not dislocate personal responsibility to the growing understanding of neuroscience , but rather, encourages and empowers us to engage our teens and young adults with compassion. In other words, we can say with honest trust in the goodness of developing people, "I know you want to do this right (morally, effectively, meaningfully, developmentally), but here are the challenges you are facing. Stick with it. You will overcome." Thank you Dr Jensen for your important work. Highly recommend to anyone interested in living a more compassionate life.

Misleading title

The information in this book feels geared towards people working in neuroscience or along side it. Although it contained a lot of interesting science on the development of adolescent brains, this lacks the needed tools to actually "survive" these hard years. If I could take the little advice or tips provided in the book on navigating this stage of life, it would fit in a very small chapter. I forced myself through it, and enjoyed some of the chapters but this did little to help my children or myself. Quite disappointed that there was no real help here.

Info makes teenage years easier

The teenage years are challenging so having a better understanding of why they do what they do makes it easier to get through the blow ups and keep my cool.

Helpful subject...hard to get over reader

Would you be willing to try another book from Frances E. Jensen and Amy Ellis Nutt ? Why or why not?

Absolutely.

Would you be willing to try another one of Tavia Gilbert and Frances E. Jensen ’s performances?

Not likely. I found it very hard to get over the very pompous voice performance. I don't know how much I actually got from this book because of this huge distraction. I think I'll reread on my Kindle.

What did you learn from The Teenage Brain that you would use in your daily life?

We must be patient with our half-brained teens!

Beyond Insightful

This book is a must for parents and anyone whose aim it is to see children through the teenage years and help them become wholesome adults.

Good info, bad advice

A lot of the advice on how to act on her findings is terrible. But the information itself is really top notch.

Fascinating

Parents and those with an interest in the study of the brain will get a lot out of this book. Jensen presents the information in an easy-to-understand and engaging way. Lots of food for thought here. I didn't care for the narrator at all. She was too breathy and really over-enunciated everything. Is it really pronounced "neeeeeerohscience"? Took me a few hours to get used to her voice. Almost bailed on the audio version but didn't have time to read the book right now.

A lot like its subject matter . . . .

There's something good and valuable buried there somewhere, but it's hard to find amid all the noise. The substance is scattered and disorganized. And there's way (way, way, way) too much dwelling on the author and her family. Many of these passages are so out of place that you're dumbfounded that an editor didn't strike them. The result reads like a blog by an extremely proud mother who wants to give you parenting advice and who occasionally muses about neuroscience. Not my cup of tea.

Very informative and enlightening!

Loved it. I think I will be much more patient and understanding with my teenage so after listening to this book.

Quick thought

This work provides important information in a digestible manner. The science is there, although needing much more research in the area, Jensen achieves a level where the teenager is demystified. The work while not without criticism did a lot for me.