Co-parenting is a special case within the broader category of parenting and family therapy. Two situations are most common to co-parenting difficulties: (1) where separated parents get help maintaining coordination and consistency in their parenting strategies without being in romantic [...]
Grief is one of those universal life experiences from which a person never really recovers but learns to cope with and grow through. When we lose people we love, the world is permanently changed. This is the price we pay as humans for the richness that our loved ones bring to our lives. Although[...]
Gender identity is a spectrum that describes to which degree a person perceives and recognizes their inner knowledge and outer expression of gender. Generally, this is the consistency between anatomical sex and the person’s internal maleness or femaleness or combination or neutrality. There are [...]
It’s my responsibility as a mental health professional to remember the history of the American Psychiatric Association’s diagnostic manual. Sexual orientation and identities were considered diagnoses that came with stigma and suffering. Homosexuality was considered a diagnosis until 1973, and [...]
Humans experience stress as a natural reaction to meet a demand or challenge. This “fight or flight” survival mechanism slows normal bodily functions like immunity and digestion to focus on breath, alertness, blood circulation, and muscle movement. The degree to which we react can be [...]
Your parenting decisions have a tremendous impact on your child’s emotional and social development. Their belief systems are modeled by your example, and they will pick up moral values, discipline, and manners from what they see. It’s vital that parents give their children a healthy basis for [...]
Your spouse just came up to you and said “ I think we should get pre-marital counseling”. You are completely blindsided. You may be confused. You thought your relationship was moving into such a good place, what is wrong that your significant other is asking you for pre-marital [...]
People would cease to exist without relationships. The sense of self dissolves without relationships with others, and by contrast, people are created and sustained within their social situations. Sometimes relationships are the primary reason a person enters psychotherapy, yet they are always an[...]
Our family structure helps us develop relationship expectations, communication skills, life outlook, the way we show our love, coping skills, and many traits through conditioning. Chronic family conflict can negatively impact your physical, emotional, and mental health. Tension and ongoing conflict [...]
Divorce will bring up many required changes in your routine in regard to legal, parental, financial, emotional, and practical aspects. Separation and divorce can be extremely emotional and challenging for all parties. Equilibrium may take several years to achieve after marriage dissolution, [...]