It's OK: Being Kind to Yourself When Things Feel Hard

I bought this book for myself, a 56 year old woman! I am taking a course on Self Compassion, and I thought this could be a nice companion. When I am having a hard day, I read this to myself, and it really helps me. It’s written beautifully, and I love the illustrations. I love that the same mantra is repeated throughout the book. I highly recommend this book and I think it would work great for children as well!

I must confess to being somewhat a collector of children's books that address the all-important topics of feelings, self-worth, social-emotional learning, and mindfulness, but I do not think I have ever come across a book before that touched me quite as deeply. Wendy O'Leary's latest book, It's OK: Being Kind to Yourself When Things Feel Hard, is likely to resonate with children and adults alike. Truly, it is a book I wish I had when I was a child. I intend to use it in my work as an early childhood educator, and personally, with my own grandchildren. The language is simple, direct, clear, and repetitive enough to offer the young child something safe, predictable, and most importantly, memorable, and the illustrations by Sandra Eide are vibrant, clear, and extremely appealing. A variety of scenarios are presented, each with its accompanying feeling such as sadness, anger, and worry, as well as some less talked about ones such as frustration and disappointment. Additionally, the author addresses issues that can affect self-worth such as making mistakes, feeling left out, and feeling not good enough. Children are reminded that we all feel these ways at times, and are encouraged to befriend themselves and offer themselves self-compassion. So many books address issues of kindness, but this is one of the first I have seen that addresses kindness to self. I applaud Wendy O'Leary for taking this on! It's OK would be a wonderful gift for any child, or for the inner child in us all.

This book is so cute and has calmed my 3 year old down in many situations. I plan on buying a copy for his Montessori teacher to keep in her peace corner.

This is one of my favorite books to read for ages 4-12 (and yes, the middle schoolers do still like to be read to. It has repetition of an easy phrase and gesture to self-comfort. The illustrations are beautiful. The text is simple and the message important.

An important message for us all and shared in such an accessible and memorable way. I love the repeated refrain... sweet and soothing!

What a great book for teaching young children and their caregivers how to be kind to themselves. I work with children who have trouble expressing their feelings because of trauma or other difficult life circumstances like being or feeling different. It’s going with my other classic kids books like Love You Forever.

It's OK is a wonderfully written book about identifying feelings which is so vital for children to learn about themselves and others in order to cope in this complex global society. It's a great follow up to Wendy's previous books and extends her message of calm and loving who we are.

As a nonprofit leader in youth development, I see first-hand the dire need for kids to understand self-compassion and I have witnessed the positive impact when children practice mindfulness. Wendy O’Leary is the premier expert educator on mindfulness and self-compassion and her books are fan-favorites among our staff, youth, and parents. Plus, many funders recognize the invaluable impact and have supported the opportunity to host Wendy O’Leary to speak and to provide a book for each child. I highly recommend!