“I wonder why progress always looks so much like destruction.” -John Steinbeck What do things like asking loved ones for advice, reading stacks of self-help books, taking classes, searching for a good therapist, or hours of web-searching all have in common? You probably guessed it. There is something the seeker wishes to change. As a […]
Top 10 Tools for Surviving Family Vacations
Now that school’s out, everyone wants to play and go on vacation. Having a flashlight and flares for a car trip is a great idea. So is a travel bag of games and CDs. But what about a repair kit for family feelings? Or a road map to harmony? Even a dream vacation in an […]
Reclaiming the Soul of Birthdays
“Your children need your presence far more than your presents.” […]
Kids from Happy Families Adjust Better to School
A three year longitudinal study confirmed what family therapists have observed clinically for decades–namely that patterns of family interaction have profound effects on children–both for better and for worse. Melissa Sturge-Apple, a researcher from the University of Rochester, studied 234 families with 6 year-old children, and followed the adjustment of the kids in their first […]
Parenting Advice for the New Millenium
“Parenting today is a wildly challenging, confusing job, far beyond anything most of us expected.” -Ron Taffel, Ph.D. This is how family therapist and child-rearing expert, Ron Taffel, begins his most recent book for parents, Childhood Unbound: Saving Our Kids’ Best Selves–Confident Parenting in a World of Change. What I love most about this […]
