It’s one of life’s little joys to watch a young child play with a toy figure, creating a fantastical world filled with heroes and villians. While they hold their little figure on the edge of a chair, they call the action: “They’re about to get you… jump, jump into the...
Sparking Meaningful Conversations With Kids
What's the nicest thing anyone ever said to you when you were a kid? If you're like most people, you'd probably reflect on a loving memory of a parent, or perhaps a teacher, praising you or simply saying I love you at a particularly impactful moment. The flip side is...
The Insidious Effects Of Emotional Abuse
If you’re in a fulfilling long-term romantic relationship. you probably don’t spend a lot of time asking yourself — why is everything just so right? If only that were the case when the relationship is not so fulfilling. Then the tendency is to be constantly nagged by...
Some Kids Don’t Win At This Game
Family Counseling Insights brought to you by Patricia McTague-Loft In those innocent days before the internet existed, kids often filled their lazy summer afternoons playing everything from Monopoly to Creature Castle. Fast forward 50 years and kids are still enjoying...
Kids — It’s Time To Slow Down
Family Counseling Insights brought to you by Patricia McTague-Loft A lot of parents and grandparents remember the lazy summer days long ago when their kids were growing up. Lucky kids headed off to summer camp, and simple programs like Little League kept them all busy...
The Beguiling Complexity of Pathological Lying
Family Counseling Insights brought to you by Patricia McTague-Loft One of the most important factors that affect the quality of a friendship or romantic relationship is trust. Friends trust each other to be there when they need them — to “have their back.” The more a...
How To Help Children Build Resilience
Family Counseling Insights brought to you by Patricia McTague-Loft We recently wrote about the potential severe negative consequences in a child’s development when they undergo constant, prolonged stress: Dealing With Childhood Stress In A Healthy Way. The good news...
Dealing With Childhood Stress In A Healthy Way
Family Counseling Insights brought to you by Patricia McTague-Loft Seeing a child in distress — in tears and sobbing — is a heartbreaking sight for anyone. It’s even more poignant for a parent when that child is their own. That’s why it’s so natural for mothers...
How Much Screen Time For Your Kids Is Enough?
Family Counseling Insights brought to you by Patricia McTague-Loft It seems like the internet has been around forever. But most people probably didn’t start regularly visiting websites until 2000 or so. And who even knew what Google was back then? Beyond the internet,...
Advice For Parents Of Kids 6-10
Family Counseling Insights brought to you by Patricia McTague-Loft Styles of parenting are almost as individual and unique as parents themselves. Some parents just wing it, figuring that loving their kids and providing for their basic needs is just fine, thank you....