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Showing posts from July, 2006

Behind the Scene at Life Works: The Wedding

Running an office filled with five therapists, hundreds of clients, three full time internal support staff, and the sole responsibility of community outreach and media event coordinator falls on the shoulders of our Business Manager Kristi. My often said assessment of her is that she is a wise woman of 40 masquerading in a 23 year old body! Kristi is our hub and we are the spokes that make up the wheel of the Life Works Group family. From the moment Kristi sat talk with me about joining Life Works I knew she was special. Just how special would not be revealed until six months later. Tim Hendricks impressed me the moment I enthusiastically transferred all my accounts from Sun Trust to the wonderful God centered Orlando National Bank. His warmth, genuineness, humility and dedication to doing what God sent him to do made me more than a little curious about the woman he mentioned he was engaged to. Many months passed with us exchanging friendly bits of conversati

You Don’t Bring Me Flowers Anymore, By JOHN WAGNER, M.S., L.M.H.C., N.C.C. (AN EXCERPT FROM JOHN’S BOOK “HOW DO YOU KEEP THE MUSIC PLAYING”)

There is a gradual movement from the romantic stage, which can last from six months to two years, to disconnection. One of the biggest illusions in our culture is that the honeymoon stage will last forever, if you just find the right partner. We begin to discover this disconnection stage through disappointment with our partner which leads to disillusionment leading to coercion and then to an impasse. Neil Diamond and Barbara Streisand sang “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers Anymore” which tells the story of couples disconnecting. You don’t bring me flowers, you don’t sing me love songs You hardly talk to me anymore when I come through the door at the end of the day I remember when you couldn’t wait to love me, used to hate to leave me Now after lovin me, let I now When its good for you and your feelin alright Well I’ll just roll over and turn out the lights You don’t bring me flowers anymore It used to be so natural, talk about forever But used to be’s don’t count anymore, they

The Bus is Here and I Can’t Pry My Child Off My Leg! Identifying Symptoms of School Phobia

Most parents can remember the traumatic and extremely emotional “first day of school” for their children. This moment in life is difficult for everyone involved; the parent, because it means that their little baby is growing up, and the child, because they have never been away from mom and dad like this before. The child is entering an unknown world, full of strangers (and aren’t they taught to not talk to them), adults who look scary, and a new set of rules and expectations. This day is also difficult for the teachers, as they must manage an entire class of emotional and fearful children. Even the bus drivers sometimes feel pressure as dad and mom follow them all the way to school to make sure that he/she is not a driving maniac. Yes, the first day of school can be very difficult for all of us…but what if the child is 14? Or 16? Or 18? What if the first day of school becomes an issue every year? Believe it or not, going back to school always has some fear attached to it, but for some

Moving Beyond Back to School Stress by Dwight Bain

Summer vacation ends with the first RING of the school bell, yet for many students it's not just the end to relaxing days, it's the beginning of major change and stress. Back to school stress is a common emotional reaction that every child has to deal with from elementary through college years. Most kids transition through this adjustment within a few days to a week and settle in for the challenges of the school year ahead. However, it's getting more common to see children developing stress related disorders that affect their sleep, diet, energy and mood. In extreme cases its possible that this build up of emotional pressure can grow and lead to other problems like childhood anxiety, depression and social phobias. Thankfully there are a number of things that you can do as a parent, (or teacher) to help a child move from feeling overwhelmed by back to school stress by building in some strategies to bring early academic success. These principles will assist you in preven

WHEN TO SEEK MARRIAGE COUNSELING

Falling in love can happen quickly, unexpectedly and with little effort, but staying in love requires commitment, dedication and lots of effort. Great marriages rarely just happen they are co-created by the partners. So, if you are not happy with the relationship you have created why not seek professional help to create something that really works. All of the marital research clearly concludes that the best predictor of overall happiness in life is marital happiness. When people are in a happy marriage they perform better in all other aspects of their lives, such as; in their jobs and as parents. Happily married people live longer and are physically and emotionally healthier. As divorce has become more common ( 50% of marriages end in divorce) and therefore more socially acceptable couples expect higher levels of marital satisfaction to keep the marriage together. Marriage Counseling is not limited to severely dysfunctional couples it can also be an effective way to enrich an already r