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Aging / Geriatric Counseling
With each season of life, there are gains and losses. Perhaps this year or in this life stage, you are wrestling with how to make sense of and cope with the losses that come along with it. Use the questions below as a self-reflective guide. Do you… feel distress about getting older? have frustrations with changes in your body and mind as you age? feel that aging is a bad thing? have thoughts that aging makes you obsolete? Agape counselors who work with this subject:
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12 Tips for Parenting Your Teenager
by Janet Kontz, MA, LPC Does this sound familiar? We often hear from parents of teenagers that they find it difficult to connect with their kids when they reach the adolescent stage of life. Many parents feel that this is the most daunting time to be a parent. Helping your teenager navigate through this period of life in between childhood and adulthood can be as confusing and frustrating for you, as it is for them. Take heart, parents! It doesn’t have to be a hard as you might think, and you don’t have to do it alone. Here are 12 tips for understanding and parenting your teenager: 1. Expect inconsistencies Teenagers are…
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Empty Nest: Ambivalent Emotions
This summer I watched a mommy bird build a nest in our back yard. Never before had I witnessed such a cycle of nature. This mommy bird was very nurturing and protective. Every day she sat on her little eggs with a watchful eye. When her babies hatched, she was faithful to care for them. She guarded them, she nourished them and she taught them. Then, as is God’s design, one day the nest was empty. Empty Nest and Mixed Emotions Like the mommy bird, as parents, we are nurturing and protective. We care for our babies, we guard them, we tend to their basic needs, and we do our…
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Empathy: The Connection Tool for Your Relationship Toolbox
In previous articles, we have discussed some tools that help strengthen relationships. Some of these topics have included tools for gaining a stronger sense of self, tools for confrontation and using your voice, tools for getting free of relationship gridlock, as well as tools for understanding the neurochemistry of the brain in committed relationships. Sometimes applying the tools to improve our relationships can be challenging. If you struggle with putting your relationship tools into action with your loved ones, try adding empathy to your relationship toolbox! So what is empathy anyway? Webster’s Dictionary defines empathy as “the feeling that you understand and share another person’s experiences and emotions: the…
Marriage, Family, & Individual Counseling | St Louis MO
