How long should I wait for my spouse to change?

"Change" is quite a catch-phrase these days. While we all want change, it seems that waiting for change is becoming more and more difficult for each of us. It is not uncommon for someone who is seeking change in their marriage to come in after their second or third therapy session and resign their marriage (and marriage counseling) due to the lack of prompt progress. A marriage could struggle for 5, 10, or 20 years, and either husband or wife or both have the mistaken belief that a fix should happen in a couple of weeks. Resetting their expectations is one of my early priorities in counseling if both partners are going to commit to the healing process for a broken marriage.

The Difference Between Men's and Women's Brains

Erasing Challenging Behavior and Providing Positive Change for Children with Autism: In-Home Help for Parents

Autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life and causes substantial impairments in language and social interaction skills. Children with Autism usually display unusual or challenging behaviors and interests. Autism is defined as a spectrum disorder because it affects individuals differently and to varying degrees. For example, children with Autism may struggle in different areas including: difficulty expressing their needs, preferring to play alone/aloof, difficulty interacting with others, engaging in repetitive behaviors/interests, having obsessive attachments to objects, difficulty following instructions, and/or throwing tantrums.

Blended Family Principle # Seven: Maintain a United Front

While maintaining a united front is well known to be an important principle in good parenting, this can become significantly more difficult, while being even more important, in blended families. It is, of course, normal for parents to have developed closer bonds with their biological children with whom they've been since birth, than they would with new stepchildren. According to Ron Deal in Successful Stepfamilies, each member of a step family has to deal with differing levels of attachment, diverse backgrounds, previous losses and divided loyalties. This complexity often blind-sides newly married blended family couples. The goal should never be to try and emulate a nuclear family, but rather to be a healthy blended family. Part of this goal is for the stepparent to be another positive adult in the children's lives.

What Heritage Counseling Center, Inc Does

At Heritage Counseling Center (HCC), helping families and individuals takes place in the context of a Christ-centered, therapeutic relationship. HCC seeks to provide a safe and healing-focused relationship with each individual or family member who seeks therapy services. Each therapist has a personal commitment to Jesus Christ and partners with the Holy Spirit to effect positive change with each individual or family. There is an underlying belief that healing comes first with one's relationship with the Almighty and then through developing therapeutic relationships with other people. Each therapist is committed to the proper integration of Biblical knowledge and psychological knowledge. Our ultimate goal is to graciously speak truth that begins with a scriptural standard and tested psychological skill. It is this truth that provides a safe therapeutic relationship.