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Lost for Words: Supporting a Parent after the Loss of a Child
The loss of a child—no matter the age—can be traumatic and can leave family, particularly the parents, reeling in the emotional turmoil that comes with great loss. I have noticed a ... Read More
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Aging and Relationships: A Tale of Dementia’s Toll
“Mary, would you like some soup?” Thomas asked. “No, dear,” Mary answered, “but, I’ll have a corned beef on rye.” “Mary, you remember the ... Read More
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Conflict and the Thinker/Feeler Struggle in Relationships
The thinking/feeling dichotomy was first connected to individual differences in psychological types (personalities) by Carl Jung. It is used in the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator’s personality ... Read More
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Sexual Intimacy After Childbirth: When It Isn’t Like Before
For many women, having a baby is a long-awaited blessing. You have been carrying a baby for nine (or even 10) months; you might have been trying to become pregnant for a while; and your ... Read More
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Anxiety and Relationships: Seven Tips to Improve Communication
is an important aspect of relationships, which can be incredibly complicated. Being in love doesn’t automatically lead to understanding or responding ideally to another person’s needs. ... Read More
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The Seasons of Trauma: Recognizing When Symptoms Might Flare Up
A woman who has experienced a traumatic event seeks counseling when she finds that symptoms related to the trauma affect her ability to enjoy life and function normally. She meets with ... Read More
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Managing the Milestone: Your Child’s 18th Birthday
Over the course of a decade working therapeutically with adolescents and their families, I have observed countless young people as they reach a highly anticipated milestone in their lives: ... Read More
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Self-Esteem Means Esteem for Others, Too
You may have heard it said that you can’t truly love another person if you don’t love yourself. I wholeheartedly believe this to be true, and I think it speaks to the “mirror-type” ... Read More
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The Truth About ‘Lesbian Bed Death’: It’s Complicated
In 1982, sociologists Pepper Schwartz and Philip Blumstein published American Couples: Money, Work, Sex, the first major study of its kind to compare gay male, lesbian, and heterosexual ... Read More
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Three Reasons to Leave: Abuse, Addiction, and Affairs
As a clinical psychologist and certified addictions counselor, I see husbands, wives, and partners in individual or couples therapy on a daily basis grappling with the decision to leave ... Read More
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How to Turn Self-Hatred into Self-Compassion
“I’m such a loser.” “I can’t do anything right.” “I’m ugly.” Too often, people brutally judge and attack themselves. If everyone treated others as poorly as they treat ... Read More
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Selfishness, Guilt, and Separation: When Parents Take Precedence
“You’re so selfish!” I hear this phrase too frequently when working with people who have trouble with separation and individuation. When children hear from their parents that they ... Read More
