Year: 2011
“There are no ‘good‘ or ‘bad‘ people. Some are a little better or a little worse but all are activated more by misunderstanding than malice. A blindness to what is going on in each other’s hearts. Stanley sees Blanche not as a desperate, driven creature backed into a last corner to make a last desperate […]
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Last fall’s Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert Rally on the Washington DC Mall to “Restore Sanity and/or Fear” reminded me of the intentional effort many couples make to bring love and connection back into their own relationships, after a period of disconnection. Think of the extreme bi-partisan divide between the political parties in the U.S. […]
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As I finished up today with Estonia’s first class of Imago therapists I can’t begin to tell you the joy, pride and emotion that filled our training room situated next to Tallinn’s historic Old Town. One of the many requirements to become skilled in couple’s work is to show your work for supervision and learn […]
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Today’s fast-paced culture often doesn’t lend itself to the slow work of counseling. PC&CC’s Robert Gordon admits that his own impatience kept him out of the counseling world for a number of years, preferring organizational work. “With individuals, I sometimes find it challenging that each client has their own process, their own time frame for […]
READ ARTICLEIt seems like our society is driven to distraction. We are constantly faced with stimuli and it is rather challenging to find peace of mind. As therapists, we see firsthand the insidious effects of anxiety and stress on marriages, families, and almost all relationships. One helpful technique I have learned to help maintain inner calm, […]
READ ARTICLEIf you were lucky, an adult in your life read aloud to you when you were young. Reading to a child is a wonderful way to stimulate his or her imagination, improve reading comprehension and verbal skills, and create a sense of safety and connection. One reason adults read to children before bedtime is to […]
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I have found in my personal life as a men’s group participant as well as from working with men for over 20+ years that men, when in the company of men, are actually able to be vulnerable, honest, and express their feelings in a deeper way that doesn’t happen as easily when women are present. […]
READ ARTICLEIn her book Bring Yourself to Love, Mona Barbera, Ph.D., offers the idea of “giving better back” as a way to affect real change in your relationships. Rather than getting hooked into to a predictably toxic discussions, she suggests that we can “show [our] partner how it feels to be treated well” by doing it. […]
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Sometimes it can feel like there is no one to talk to when things get rough. Sometimes you just want someone to help celebrate your joys and successes. It may make you wonder, what ever happened to the idea of having a best friend? Often we think of best friends as something that happens only […]
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“The Mindful Way through Depression: Freeing Yourself from Chronic Unhappiness” (2007) by Williams, Teasdale, Segal, and Kabat-Zinn, is a resource worth knowing about for anyone who suffers from depression. The first part of the book artfully discusses depression and educates the reader about symptoms and treatment. It is a collaborative effort on the part of […]
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