Mindfulness for Emerging Adults
Finding balance, belonging, focus and meaning in the digital age
Young adulthood has always been a time of intense transition and, therefore, vulnerability and opportunity. Donna Torney masterfully weaves the time-tested, robust, and evidence-based concepts of mindfulness into today’s rapidly changing, digitally-oriented world.
Mindfulness for Emerging Adults explores the task of becoming an adult in the twenty-first century by citing advances in neuroscience to encourage seeing mindfulness and other contemplative practices as essential life skills. These ancient and now rigorously researched practices are more important than ever in our age of accelerated change, media overload, and chronic busyness. Due to the significant interest in mindfulness by the scientific community, we now have evidence that these practices create positive change in the mind and body. By exploring and adopting mindfulness and other contemplative practices, which the author calls Center Points, emerging adults can forge a path to find authentic identity and healthy personal and community connections, creating a good life in the digital age.
Emerging Adults and Mindfulness Skills
If you are an emerging adult, the mindfulness skills you learn in this book will help you take control of stress and manage difficult emotions. You will become grounded in the present moment and experience ease, contentment, and life satisfaction – a state that positive psychologists call well-being. Throughout the book, highlighted sections entitled Voices of Emerging Adults tell the stories of typical young adult struggles. These stories are a composite of tales Donna hears in her private therapy practice, with details changed to protect privacy. The most common themes are highlighted, such as finding intimacy in a digital world, managing debt, finding a fruitful and worthwhile career path, managing difficult emotions, and practicing self-care. Of course, maturity and growth often happen outside a therapist’s office. One of the goals of Mindfulness for Emerging Adults is to help young adults identify mentors in different areas of their lives.
Therefore, this book is also written for parents, teachers, counselors or other mentors of young adults. Highlighted sections entitled Thoughts for Mentors will guide older adults to better relate to young adult challenges. By listening to the voices of modern young adults and comparing their stories to the timeless developmental challenges of past generations, readers will be able to build greater understanding of the perennial journey to adulthood.
Mindfulness for Emerging Adults will inspire hope in young adults looking for the good life. Hopeful, compassionate, confident young adults will lead us to the best version of the twenty-first century.
Reviews:
"This wonderful book offers vital, timely wisdom and tools for young adults and those who love them, and for anyone who wants to live a more present, engaged, and meaningful life. That means this is a book for everyone."
-Kristi Nelson, MPA, Executive Director, A Network for Grateful Living
"Mindfulness for Emerging Adults is a must read that will capture your attention! This engaging guide is concise yet comprehensive, with intriguing and immediately applicable exercises. Donna Torney masterfully highlights how to weave the time tested, powerful, and evidence-based concepts of mindfulness into today's rapidly changing, digitally-oriented world. She successfully translates sophisticated scientific constructs and contemplative practices into understandable terms and relevant tactics."
-Karen Doll, PsyD
"Donna combines the techniques of Easter philosophies (yoga and Buddhism) with the evidence of modern neuroscience, which proves that regular mindfulness practice can have a lasting effect on health. Using her experience as a therapist, Donna offers a buffet of tools and techniques that will satisfy any reader, regardless of motivational and learning style."
-Derrick Rice, software engineer, emerging adult and mentor
