Author Archive

Let’s Play a Couples Communication Game!

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Let’s Play a Couples Communication Game!

Who’s ready to play a couples communication game?

Below are two conversations between couples. Read them both and see if you can spot the differences.

Conversation One:

Sarah and John have been married for five years and both arrive home from work at 6:00.

Sarah: I had such a difficult day today, my boss really gave me a hard time. I am not sure if I can deal with it all.

John: Yea? Me too, my boss said that I did a good job on the project ...

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Couples Counseling, Marriage Counseling Wilmington NC

How Exactly Does Therapy Help with Issues?

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How Exactly Does Therapy Help with Issues?

I recently had a question asked of me and I would like to share the answer here with you. It is a common question that I get about three of four times a year from students and folks interested in counseling. I hope you find the answer helpful.

The question is: “How exactly does therapy help with issues?” Here is my response

Hi, thanks for the question. In addition to being a counselor I am also a professor and I research how counseling works.

I ...

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Counseling Tips for Wilmington NC

Counseling Confidential

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Counseling Confidential

There are few people that I love to watch on television more than Anthony Bourdain. He has made a living by exploring how cooking is done; its intricacies, cultural and local flavors, as well as the dirt and grime of the kitchen and those in the restaurant world. I like real things and real understandings and he can pull the veils down, cut through the smoke screens, and shatter the mirrors like no one else.

In 2000, he wrote a book ...

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Counseling Tips for Wilmington NC

My Story Mentioned in US News & World Report

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My Story Mentioned in US News & World Report

I had a story mentioned today in US News & World Report. They wanted a few marriage counselors to tell how they proposed marriage in inexpensive ways.

My girlfriend and I were just out of college, broke and teaching english in the Czech Republic and Japan.

This was a fun story the link is here:

http://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/articles/2014/10/24/fun-and-frugal-ways-to-propose-marriage

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Marriage Counseling Wilmington NC

Monster.com: How Can a Partner’s Personality Affect Someone’s Career?

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Monster.com: How Can a Partner’s Personality Affect Someone’s Career?

Last week I was interviewed by Monster.com as a couples expert for an article they are doing on how your spouse can make or break your career.

Though the topic was a bit presumptuous it is worth exploring how those we love can assist us and occasionally interfere with our career goals.

As with all interviews I offered them ideas, thoughts and what I see as words of occasional wisdom and their editors cut it down into several quotes that they then sprinkle throughout the ...

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Marriage Counseling Wilmington NC

I Am Pissed About North Carolina Intensive In-Home!

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I Am Pissed About North Carolina Intensive In-Home!

I am officially pissed!

I read yesterday that effective October 1st, 2014, the service definition for intensive in-home has been changed so that IIH teams can now carry a caseload of 12 families, up from 8 families!!

This is a 50% increase in workload for what raise?

0% raise!

If you want to see the actual letter take a look at this link: Letter from North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.

If you don’t want to ...

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Intensive In Home

Let the Medicaid Consolidation Fun in North Carolina Begin!

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Let the Medicaid Consolidation Fun in North Carolina Begin!

Hot off the internet presses!

Looks like CoastalCare and East Carolina Behavioral Health are merging. They are charged with merging by July 1, 2015.

Here is part of the press release with important words bolded:

Maintaining a local presence and taking the least disruptive approach for consumers, families, providers, the community, and employees of the current agencies is paramount for the new organization. With a total population of 1,259,757—and an estimated 165,000 of those people eligible for Medicaid–the combined ...

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Medicaid