Archive for March, 2008
Healthy Communication in Relationships: What does that mean?
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Couples frequently come in to my office saying that they want “healthier communication.” But what does that really mean?
All of these high functioning, business oriented, goal driven couples communicate to one another; they talk, express how they feel, and continue to discuss ongoing issues. They regurgitate the problem over and over, they reshape the way they say things, they shift their perspective, and they constantly try various ways to explain their side. Communication is exactly what they do, but the bigger question is what do they accomplish? Learning how to communicate is too broad of an issue….healthy communication is about narrowing in, taking a deeper look at the interactions within each partner, and understand how the couple interact together. Read More→
Improve Self-Esteem: Building a more confident you
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Self-esteem and confidence is basically an overall opinion of you and can impact daily experiences. Our level of self-esteem virtually affects all areas of life; the type of people you attract, your career building, your relationships, and other important areas.
People with an unhealthy self-esteem can often send a vibe that other people can pick up on. Read More→
Advice to Stop Critical Thinking:Live Without Beating Yourself Up
Posted by: | CommentsSaying Good-Bye to Critical Thoughts
Summer’s on its way and for San Diego that means it’s a time for beaches, barbeques, and fun in the sun! Many of us find ourselves making healthy decisions like switching to water instead of drinking soda, exercising a couple more times a week, or resisting the urge to eat that second sliver of cake while others sometimes make unhealthy–potentially dangerous–choices in a rush effort to shed those lingering holiday pounds: skipping meals, crash dieting, or running on the treadmill until being on the verge of collapse. Body image is important to most everybody–a fact that is felt even more so in a city known for having beautiful people. Read More→
Premarital Counseling: The Importance to Building a SOLID Foundation
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Premarital counseling is a preventative tool, a way to maintain a healthy connection in the relationship and create a lasting commitment through effective communication. Relationships are an investment: the more you put into it, the more it will grow and mature. The more it grows and matures, the more you get out of it. Because statistics show that nearly 50% of marriages end in divorce (US Census Bureau, February 2002), premarital counseling can help couples avoid becoming part of that percentage. Read More→
Stress Advice: Letting Out the Air Before You POP
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Stress and Anxiety can come in many forms and can be difficult to deal with on a daily basis. You might notice it impacting how you work, the way you parent, or even the way you communicate in your relationship.
Imagine a balloon that is not inflated. And think about when the balloon gets inflated with air, it begins to get bigger and bigger. If you don’t let out the air, it will explode. This is exactly how our emotions are! We all have an “emotional balloon” where we store our emotions. Read More→
Simple Relationship Advice: Helping couples stay Connected
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Just a few words of advice….
Love isn’t the only thing a relationship needs to stay alive. It needs attention, emotional security, and effective communication. Read More→
Who I Am: Get To Know Your Relationship Expert & Therapist
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I am a wife, a therapist, an adventure junky, a joker, a writer, a social butterfly, a motorcycle lover, a runner, and a busy bee.
I was once told that I wasn’t going to make it into graduate school and I wouldn’t be able to have a thriving private practice. I like challenges, so I took that challenge and proved them wrong. I am passionate and willing to take a risk for my life goals, dreams, and aspirations. My life long dream was to have a private practice….and I got it! Not only did I achieve my goal, but I bypassed my expectations.
I could tell you about the boring stuff…like being a Marriage Therapist in San Diego, and give you the “psycho-babble” jargon, but I would prefer to have you know ME, the person behind the scenes.
I sit in this brown swivel chair in my office, absorbing as much information as I can when I am with my clients. My goal is to really understand their world. My mind gets filled with movie images as they walk me through their lives, catching me up to speed. My heart dives in, and off we go. I don’t take sides…and I WON’T take sides. And I won’t pick who is “right” and who is “wrong;” couples already do enough of that. I don’t need to keep them stuck in that rut. So I try to take the couples out of their destructive ways of communicating, and into a new lens of the bond…creating a safe, secure bond. Read More→
conflicting couples, affairs, communication struggles, etc.