Happy… er, Spring?

Things have been a-bustling quietly here at the practice since I finally cut off the ties to a day-job in IT and moved into the business of being *just* a therapist late last year. Like Spring 2014, this transition feels like it’s been a very long time in coming, and the traffic that finds me by hitting on this website is a big part of what’s making that transition even remotely possible. So if you’re an existing client, or taking a tour of this site for the first time on a current quest for a therapist you might be willing to work with, thanks for taking the time to read, and welcome!

One of the things I’ll be doing in 2014 is making more use of this platform to share what I think are useful articles from (hopefully) reputable sources, about relationships, psychology, families, and mental health. I believe that putting more information into people’s hands is the best way to help you make more informed decisions about getting your needs and wants met, in and outside of relationships, in the most effective ways possible. Some of this will be in the form of links to articles, some of it will be book reviews as I’m reading new material, some of it might be clinical observations from my own work with clients. In all cases, hopefully this information will provide some insight to you, the reader, maybe even permission to think about your own situation in new ways. And if you’d like to continue such ponderings as in-person conversations, then perhaps give me a call or send me an email and we’ll set up a sit-down and see what we can do to get you the information or perspectives you feel you need.

Today’s entry is all about understanding that relationship skills need practice too. So often, we get settled into a relationship and assume that, once we’ve attracted and secured a partner for ourselves, the hard part is done. In truth, more often than not the hard part and the work is just beginning. Empathy, validation, and consideration are just three aspects of intimacy that are critical to its success, but they’re big ones, and good places to start to check in and see how you and your partner are interacting with each other.