Family Counseling

Making Peace: Crafting a Recipe to Heal Toxic Family Relationships

By |August 26th, 2024|Family Counseling, Featured, Individual Counseling, Relationship Issues|

The beauty of intimate relationships emerges from being seen and known by those who love us. Unconditional love and acceptance remove certain barriers from having to explain parts of ourselves that seem odd or unusual to others outside our family circle. This can free us to fully be who God created. However, this is not the case with every family. Sometimes, challenges with intimacy arise when our hearts feel unsafe with those closest to us, giving rise to a toxic family. Understanding the toxic family When toxicity rules our communication, it makes it difficult to connect. Our interactions become governed by mistrust, and we find ourselves among strangers in the place we call home. Within the network of people who may share our name or genetic makeup, we sometimes find ourselves cycling in a loop of dysfunction. What originates as an ordinary encounter on the surface can explode into an assault on our psyche and emotions. The people who love us, though imperfect, may not possess the skills to communicate their thoughts and feelings in ways that don’t objectify or offend. We may engage in interactions where we and our family members weaponize each other’s vulnerabilities. In a sense, it seems like both a blessing and curse that our families know our sensitive areas better than most. However, when conflict erupts, no one is safe when we lance one another’s soft spots. When we misuse prized information against each other, it indicates our collective unresolved personal pain. Our relatives’ humanity collides with ours, deepening wounds that seem impossible to heal. This is not the way that God intended for us to live or relate to one another. Overcoming these feelings requires more than just dismissing the encounters from our thoughts or cutting off communication. Ignoring it changes nothing, but [...]

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Helping Children Cope With Relocation Stress

By |December 21st, 2023|Christian Counseling for Children, Christian Counseling For Teens, Family Counseling, Featured|

Change is hard. We all find comfort in the familiar and the predictable. Relocation throws us into a world of the unknown which can be stressful, more so for children. However, it is noted that a lot of families need to move at least once in their lifetime. This number increases for families whose lives involve having to move constantly and can cause relocation stress. This is especially true for military families, who on average can spend no more than three years stationed at any one base. No matter the reason for moving, it should be noted that children have a hard time with it and necessary measures need to be put in place to make the transition a lot easier for them. There are many reasons why children experience relocation stress and knowing about potential fears is helpful for parents and guardians to better understand how to help. All this has a lot to do with how old a child is. If they are toddlers, the change might not cause much distress, though they too need to be monitored. If a child is above five years old, already in school systems, and has developed friendships, the move will most likely be harder. With moving comes leaving one’s school, friends, and possibly a favorite teacher. All these need to be taken into consideration. At any age, most children are also anxious about being the new kid in class, having to navigate those first few days or weeks with no friends. Being forced to say goodbye to their friends and family relations is also something that can cause great distress, especially if the move is to another state or country altogether. How to help children cope with relocation stress Relocation is not only stressful for children, but it can be [...]

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Single Mom Help: Biblical Reminders for Single Parenting

By |October 24th, 2023|Family Counseling, Featured, Individual Counseling, Women’s Issues|

Single motherhood can be one of the loneliest and most overlooked experiences any woman can face. Whether she is widowed, divorced, or has never been married, a woman who is parenting alone faces an array of challenges that a married parent does not. Although single parenting is much more common than it used to be, it often carries a stigma, including in the church. No matter how someone became a single mother, they are worthy of love, inclusion, and friendship. If you know someone in this situation, you may wonder how you can offer a single mom help and support. If you are a single mom, or you know you may become one, you might feel overwhelmed daily by your many responsibilities. Or you might crave a listening ear for all the burdens you carry alone. Christian counseling and help with parenting and loneliness support is available for single moms. Biblical reminders for single parenting. Discouragement and burnout can accompany all parents in their daily lives, but especially those who are raising children alone. God’s promises in Scripture provide comfort and reassurance that no matter what we are facing, we don’t have to walk through it alone. So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.  –  Isaiah 41:10, NIV This passage reminds us that when we feel alone, God is still with us. He gives comfort through his presence and helps us through his supernatural strength. He promises to uphold us, which means giving consistent support and help. Fear often creeps up when we lack companionship and support. The Lord reassures us that no matter how we feel, we do not need to [...]

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How Counseling Can Help with Family Problems

By |October 12th, 2023|Family Counseling, Featured, Relationship Issues|

Family problems happen. You cannot prepare for every situation or crisis that comes along. Even if you know about specific issues, it is still challenging to navigate through them when you are in the thick of it. Many people seek therapy for family problems. This type of family counseling brings awareness to the problem and methods for dealing with it. Each family member is heard and seen during counseling; their voice matters. Common family problems No family is immune to problems. Yet, some issues can cause offense, isolation, neglect, abuse, and emotional distance. Some family problems can rip relationships apart. Children can turn against their parents, siblings may never speak to each other again, or a parent may feel it is safer to freeze out a child than to confront bad behavior. The Bible stresses the importance of marriage and family. Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court. – Psalm 127:3-5, NIV There are times when it feels as if we are being sliced by those very arrows, our children. The Bible also warns us not to over-discipline our children either, but to raise them with the right amount of discipline and teaching. Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it. – Proverbs 22:6, NIV Raising a family is hard enough without outside factors such as bullying, financial downturns, health crisis, and mental conditions adding to the family problems. The following are common family problems counselors address in therapy. Communication issues and clashing personalities. Differences in [...]

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Questions to Help You Introduce Counseling to Your Teen

By |September 8th, 2023|Christian Counseling For Teens, Family Counseling, Featured|

The idea of counseling may be new for your teen. While you may have been thinking about the benefits and researching counselors for some time, your teen may not know much about it. Instead of springing the idea on your teen, you can begin by having some natural conversations and asking him or her questions about his or her thoughts regarding counseling, mental health, and overall mental wellness. Questions to ask your teen about counseling. Sometimes teens are resistant to new ideas, especially from their parents. It can be beneficial to start slow when it comes to the idea of counseling. Instead of jumping into it or barraging him or her with questions, consider how to have natural conversations with your teen. Try to incorporate these questions and ideas for a few weeks. Question 1: Do you know anything about counseling? Begin by asking your child what they know about counseling. This does not need to be a deep, personal conversation. It can be general. Try to make this part of a natural conversation while doing something else. You can talk about something like this over dinner, in the car, or while doing chores. If you have trouble bringing it up, you can use someone in pop culture who has pursued counseling as a starting place. Remember, everyone’s ideas and perceptions about counseling are different. Teens are in a particularly unique stage of life where their ideas are still forming. How you interact with your teen can make a big difference. Question 2: Do you know any friends who go to counseling? First, it is important to be clear that you are not asking who goes to counseling. This is a general question to see if counseling is even on your teen’s radar in his or her friendships. Sometimes [...]

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4 Ways Counseling for Teens Can Impact Your Entire Family

By |August 2nd, 2023|Christian Counseling For Teens, Family Counseling, Featured, Individual Counseling|

When teens are struggling, seeing a counselor can help them be reflective about their thought patterns and circumstances. Counseling for teens can also give them the opportunity to talk to someone who is a trained listener and can ask skillful questions to help the teen come to their own realizations. When counseling works best for a teen, it impacts the entire family. 4 Ways Counseling for Teens Can Benefit Your Family Here are four ways that counseling for teens can have a positive influence on the family unit. 1. A family environment becomes less unpredictable. Teens who learn how to cope with emotional dysregulation are better able to recognize internal chaos, and they have the tools to respond in healthy ways. If the teenager has been lashing out in unhealthy ways due to an inability to recognize his or her emotions and manage them well, the family unit has likely been under serious stress. The more prolonged that state of stress, the more chaotic the home life becomes. When a teen develops a trusting relationship with a counselor, there are often fewer outbursts in the home, a greater degree of harmony among parents and other siblings, and a more holistic approach to healthier living in general. Even without trying, often when a teen learns new coping mechanisms, the family learns them too. 2. Sibling relationships may be restored and renewed over time. Not every teen who undergoes counseling wants to be there or thinks that he or she needs it. However, over time, many teens start to see the benefits of counseling in their relationships. Even if your teenager is going to counseling for an issue that primarily impacts just his or her life, the ripple effect of that counseling can be deep and wide. Perhaps your teenager has [...]

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