13 Things Mentally Strong Parents Don't Do: Raising Self-Assured Children and Training Their Brains for a Life of Happiness, Meaning, and Success

The author of the international bestseller 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do turns her focus to parents, teaching them how to raise mentally strong and resilient children.

Do today’s children lack the flexibility and mental strength they need to cope with life’s challenges in an increasingly complicated and scary world? With safe spaces and trigger warnings designed to "protect" kids, many adults worry that children don’t have the resilience to reach their greatest potential. Amy Morin, the author who identified the characteristics that mentally strong people share, now gives adults—parents, teachers, and other mentors—the tools they need to become mental strength trainers. While other books tell parents what to do, Amy teaches parents what "not to do," which she says is equally important in raising mentally strong youngsters.

As a foster parent, psychotherapist, and expert in family and teen therapy, Amy has witnessed first-hand what works. When children have the skills they need to deal with challenges in their everyday lives, they can flourish socially, emotionally, behaviorally, and academically. With appropriate support, encouragement, and guidance from adults, kids grow stronger and become better.

Drawing on her experiences and insight, 13 Things Mentally Strong Parents Don’t Do combines case studies, practical tips, specific strategies, and concrete and proven exercises to help children of all ages—from preschoolers to teenagers—build mental muscle and develop into healthy, strong adults.

In her international bestseller 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do, Amy Morin taught us what it takes to be mentally strong. Now she teaches parents the unhealthy habits to avoid in order to raise mentally strong children.

Do you prevent your child from making mistakes? Do you give your child power over you? Do you parent out of guilt? If so, you’re not alone. Every parent wants to provide their child with the best and safest future. But in today’s increasingly complicated and scary world, many parents have taken things a step too far, mistakenly believing that giving their children the best chance at a successful life involves trying to shield them from pain and reality.

From free-range parenting to helicopter parenting, many of today’s popular parenting practices aren’t allowing parents to teach children the skills they need to become mentally strong adults. In 13 Things Mentally Strong Parents Don’t Do, Amy Morin turns her focus to parents, revealing what not to do—the unhealthy thoughts, behaviors, and feelings that hold adults back from raising mentally strong children.

As a psychotherapist, an expert in family and teen therapy, and a foster parent, Morin has witnessed firsthand what works. When children have the skills they need to deal with challenges in their everyday lives, they flourish socially, emotionally, behaviorally, and academically. Morin demonstrates through easy-to-follow steps that with appropriate support, encouragement, and guidance from adults, children grow stronger and strive for a better, brighter future. Drawing on the insight she has gained from her experiences in her practice and her role as a foster parent, she combines case studies, practical tips, specific strategies, and proven exercises to help children of all ages—from preschoolers to teenagers—build the mental muscle and grit they need to develop into healthy, strong adults.

Mentally Strong Parents Raise Mentally Strong Children

Exceptional strategies and exercises for raising mentally strong children who achieve success and happiness and become the best version of themselves.

1. They Don’t Condone a Victim Mentality
2. They Don’t Parent out of Guilt 
3. They Don’t Make Their Child the Center of the Universe
4. They Don’t Allow Fear to Dictate Their Choices
5. They Don’t Give Their Child Power over Them
6. They Don’t Expect Perfection
7. They Don’t Let Their Child Avoid Responsibility
8. They Don’t Shield Their Child from Pain
9. They Don’t Feel Responsible for Their Child’s Emotions
10. They Don’t Prevent Their Child from Making Mistakes
11. They Don’t Confuse Discipline with Punishment
12. They Don’t Take Shortcuts to Avoid Discomfort
13. They Don’t Lose Sight of Their Values

“Her combination of common sense backed by research—amply cited—will help parents make a midcourse correction...Parents should find Morin’s work inspiring.” - Publishers Weekly

“Morin’s strategies support long-term goals. Her advice, while lengthy, is sound and can be applied to children of any age. Recommended.” - Library Journal

“Social worker Amy Morin lays out her treatise in an easy, sound-bitey way that results in a neat little road map for beginners that should be handed out in maternity wards.” - Lee Woodruff, author