Now What Do I Do?: A Guide to Help Teenagers with Their Parents' Separation or Divorce

Kapusinski, whose own parents separated when she was 11, is the founder of Faith Journeys Foundation, Inc., a support group for children and teens whose parents have separated or divorced. The Maryland-based foundation offers materials for retreats and peer support groups aimed at helping youngsters work through feelings and problems related to loss. Bringing God into the solution is an important aspect of the foundation, its work, and this second book Kapusinski has written on the subject. Topics, presented in workbook format, include burn-out, blaming, forgiveness, and self-esteem; suggestions for dealing with feelings of abandonment; and escaping "the war zone." The first two or three pages of each chapter contain a short story, often with dialogue, illustrating a common issue for children of divorce followed by the author's brief reflection on her own experience. The workbook exercises contain between four and seven activities such as checklists, true-false quizzes, charts, and numerous opportunities to express feelings in words or drawings. Each chapter ends with ideas on "extra ways to help yourself." This is an immensely useful book not only for youngsters whose parents are divorced or separated but also for parents and youth leaders. As Kapusinski explains, one of the most important goals is to help these children heal and grow and "draw on God's help to handle their grief."