Mallika Chopra - Just Feel: How to Be Stronger, Happier, Healthier, and More

If you are reading this book, it means you are old enough to be aware of your feelings and how things affect you. It means you are ready to be responsible, to express what you want, and to make decisions about how you live.

Perhaps someone bought this book for you and you are looking at it with an adult. Or maybe you are opening it by yourself where you live, in your classroom, or at the library. Perhaps a family member, friend, teacher, or counselor thought it would be a good book for you to read.

Maybe you were excited to open the pages because of the illustrations. Or you were feeling sad and thought the title was interesting. Perhaps you were annoyed that someone was trying to make you read this book! You may have had other feelings, as well.

Whatever the reason, this book is now in your hands, and now its your choice to read it, think about what it has to say, and test its ideas in your own life.

Knowing that you have choices is actually one of the reasons I wrote this book.

When I was young, my parents taught me that I was responsible for my actions and reactions, particularly when it came to my feelings. My parents didnt expect me to be happy or excited all the time. Rather, they let me feel pride and joy in my accomplishments, and they let me reflect on my failures, too. They let me feel sad, angry, and frustrated so that I could learn how to use my feelings to be a stronger person. They taught me to be aware of the many emotions we all experience in life and to make choices about how I reacted to them.

My parents taught me that feelings are treasuresmy feelings helped me discover what made me unique, which helped me figure out what I wanted in my life. I am grateful to my parents for giving me tools to be comfortable with and to accept my feelings.

As I grew older, I realized what a gift my parents had given me; I felt I could appreciate the good times but also get through tough times. As a mother, I have tried to teach my daughtersTara and Leelathat they, too, will have lots of experiences; they will feel strong at times and uncertain at other times.

In this book, I am sharing some of the ideas and tools that we use to support each others feelings and to manage our days. I have now also learned so much from other experts and am honored to share these ideas with you. I hope you find them helpful.

Mallika