The Road to Resilience

An effective toolbox for facing timeless and uniquely modern struggles

Whatever you might be facing, know that you are not alone. From Adam Przytula, mental health advocate and founder of Armed for Life, The Road to Resilience is a down-to-earth guide for getting through the challenges that young people face daily. Nothing is off the table, from alcohol and drug use, to self-image in the age of social media, to bullying, depression and anxiety, pornography addiction, toxic masculinity, dating and relationships. If it happens in your life, you'll probably find it in this book.

Written in an honest and accessible style, The Road to Resilience is designed to help teens with struggles they encounter every day, including those being faced for the first time by this generation. Packed full of practical exercises, life-affirming lessons and relatable stories drawn from the author's own life, this book will help you to become the person you want to be.

Inside you will find:

• Effective techniques to reassess and improve mental health
• Powerful coping strategies and skills to deal with modern issues, including toxic masculinity, pornography, and unrealistic beauty standards set by influencers
• Tools to build self-awareness and tackle bullying in-person and online

The Road to Resilience is a guide to facing down the unique challenges of today and learning the skills you need to be a healthy well-adjusted person for life.

Acknowledgements xi

Foreword xv

Introduction xvii

1 Self-esteem 1

2 Resilience 27

3 Bullying 51

4 Stress management 75

5 Positive mental health and wellbeing 111

6 Self-awareness and managing emotions 129

7 Healthy friendships 151

8 Real men 169

9 Real beauty 187

10 Dating and relationships 199

11 Drugs, alcohol and other addictions 219

Conclusion 231

Index 237

ADAM PRZYTULA is the founder of social change enterprise Armed for Life, a school program that helps students build resilience and deal with mental health issues. He runs mental health and wellbeing sessions, programs, and camps for students in Western Australia.

Don't let the tough times get you down

Whatever you might be facing, know that you are not alone. From Adam Przytula, mental health advocate and founder of Armed for Life, The Road to Resilience is a down-to-earth guide for getting through the challenges that young people face daily. Nothing is off the table, from alcohol and drug use, to self-image in the age of social media, to bullying, depression and anxiety, pornography addiction, toxic masculinity, dating and relationships. If it happens in your life, you'll probably find it in this book.

Packed full of practical exercises, life-affirming lessons and relatable stories drawn from the author's own life, this book will help you to become the person you want to be. Learn how to:

• build your self-esteem
• develop self-awareness
• find your own inner resilience
• tackle bullying, in-person and online
• foster healthy, consensual relationships.

The Road to Resilience is a guide to facing down the unique challenges of today and learning the skills you need to be a healthy well-adjusted person for life.