In a world consumed with commercialism, it can be easy to lose sight of what the holiday season is really about. We tend to focus on superficial aspects of life and then fall hard when those things crumble before our eyes. Delicious food, presents, and lots of laughs are part … Read More
Blended Family: Tips for Surviving the Holiday Season
If you are in a blended family, the holidays may seem like the most difficult time of the year rather than the most wonderful. Splitting time between more than one household is can be stressful. Time always seems too short. You can’t please everyone or feel like you always draw … Read More
How to Parent with the Magic 5:1 Ratio
If you’re a parent, these lines are all too familiar. “Hurry and eat your breakfast, or you’ll be late for school. Stop teasing your sister. Do your homework. Clean your room. I’m taking away that NERF gun if you hit you brother one more time. Are you listening to me?!” … Read More
Abusive Relationships: Recognizing Control Tactics in Conflict
Navigating conflicts is really a part of all relationships, including healthy ones. But a hallmark of an abusive relationship is when conflict is less about disunity and difference of opinion and it’s more about one person controlling the other. When an abuser engages in an argument, the goal has nothing … Read More
Compassionate Responses in a Socio-Political Climate of Fear and Division
In light of the recent presidential election, there are a lot of polarizing views right now regarding our socio-political climate and the state of the country…many of these may touch a nerve for you. In light of the current climate of fear and division, consider a couple action steps… Self-care: … Read More
Contempt – Relationship Poison
Dr. John Gottman has researched couples for over 40 years. One of the things that he is known for is being able to predict which couples would make it and which would fail with a 94% accuracy rate. Predicting individual behaviors and outcomes is tricky business with a very low … Read More
Why is He Abusive?
Most of us have probably been exposed to romantic relationships that we recognized as abusive. Sometimes, our preconceived ideas of what “domestic violence” or “victims” and “abusers” look like make it difficult to recognize and name abuse as such. But we are probably closer to victims (or perpetrators) of partner … Read More