By Gary Direnfeld, MSW, RSW Introduction Counseling teens can be tricky business. Often when social workers receives a call for help to counsel a teen it is from from an exasperated parent who no longer can tolerate the behaviour of their son or daughter. The teen is...
Kids & Families
How to Discipline an Angry Child
By Lynn Hagan, PsyD, CTRL, LCSW Introduction What You Can Do The Use of Punishment Teach Discipline by Teaching Consequences Listen for and Reflect Feelings in Your Child's Complaints Introduction Very few things try a parent's patience more than disciplining...
Parent-Youth Safe Driving Contract
By Gary Direnfeld, MSW, RSW Introduction Teen drivers have the highest crash risk of any age group. Per mile traveled, they have the highest involvement rates in all types of crashes, from those involving only property damage to those that are fatal. The problem is...
What’s So Terrible About Being Two?
By Gary Direnfeld, MSW, RSW Introduction So what's up when a kid reaches age two? Many parents are ready to pull their hair out when their kids reach this age–and it continues for about a year to a year and a half. Parents of younger infants are lulled into a sense of...
Should I Become a Foster Parent?
By Sheryl Brissett-Chapman, EdD, MSW Why Should I Become a Foster Parent? What Are a Foster Parent's Essential Duties? Other Functions Why Should I Become a Foster Parent? Here is a general list of characteristics of successful foster parents and some of...
What To Do If Your Partner Is Alcoholic
By Gary Direnfeld, MSW, RSW My Partner Is Alcoholic. What Can I Do? The Five Stages of Recovery My Partner Is Alcoholic. What Can I Do? Many problem drinkers are unable to admit to this problem. The cry for help may therefore come from someone close who suffers as a...
How Social Workers Help Couples Recover from Pregnancy Loss
By Israela Meyerstein, MSW, LCSW Pregnancy Loss The Mixed Blessing of Genetic Testing How Social Workers Help Couples Recover from Pregnancy Loss Resources Introduction Our genes or DNA determine what we will look like, how we will grow, what diseases we may...
Choosing a Marital Therapist
By Michele Weiner-Davis, MSW, LCSW It amazes me that most people decide to end their marriages without seeking professional help. The decision of whether to divorce or not is probably one of the most important decision anyone will ever make. Yet, the fact remains that...
Healing from Infidelity
By Michele Weiner-Davis, MSW Life certainly has its challenges, but little compares to the monumental task of healing from infidelity. As a marriage therapist for two decades, I've heard countless clients confess that the discovery of an affair was the lowest, darkest...
Strategies for Parenting Strong-Willed Children
By Carol Juergensen Sheets, MSW, ACSW More and more I am seeing two types of kids in my therapy practice. There are kids who make mistakes, experience natural and logical consequences of their actions, and make better choices. Those kids are easy to deal with from a...
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Recent Articles
Manage Stress Triggers to Reduce Your Stress Levels
By L.B. (LeslieBeth) Wish, Ed.D, MSS No one can avoid stress. In fact, it’s a necessary part of life. Stress symptoms such as rapid heart beat, sweating and feeling fearful are basic survival reactions that signal people that they must become more alert and ready to...
Transforming Anxiety, Transcending Shame
About the Author Rex Briggs, MSW, is author of the book "Transforming Anxiety, Transcending Shame." He specializes in treating, speaking and training others about anxiety, depression and stress-management. Through his clinical practice he has helped hundreds of people...
Three Myths About Men and Divorce
By Risa Garon, MSW, LCSW-C, BCD, CFLE Here are three common myths about men and divorce. Myth 1: Men don’t grieve divorce. Because men are socialized to fit certain cultural stereotypes, they might not feel they have permission to grieve. But men can experience a...