D. Brent Dawson Child and Family Institute

Parents with Confidence

When practiced by families, these six parenting approaches build connection, resilience, and trust, strengthening your family bond and serving as protective factors for your child's stressors.

Barb Schmidt

We can be strong, successful, and confident and we will still struggle with the mind. Mental health is taking care of yourself one day at a time, often one moment at a time.

Brené Brown

Alicia Keys' book, More Myself: A Journey is a masterclass in authenticity and vulnerability.

In this episode of Unlocking Us, Alicia and I talk about the quiet, subtle experiences that fuel our need to armor up and self-protect, and the courage behind owning our worth, listening to our own voice, and living with our own "girl on fire" energy.

I love this quote - I think we're all feeling the "groundlessness" of life right now.

Listen to the episode at https://bit.ly/2yKmSPj

How to Transform Stress into Courage and Connection

This becomes more and more important the more we are quarantined. The Greater Good Science Center

greatergood.berkeley.edu Stress doesn't always lead to fight-or-flight, says Kelly McGonigal. It can also activate brain systems that help us connect with other people.

Special Update COVID-19

Offering telehealth. Don’t let the crisis keep you from accessing the support you need.

shoutout.wix.com I take your health seriously and it is my commitment to ensure you have access to counseling services during these uncertain times. Regardless of the struggles, I will be available to meet your counseling needs. I have made the decision to offer telehealth as an option for clients who do not wish to...

The Gottman Institute

"You can choose how you will respond to the pursuer-distancer pattern if it happens in your relationship. [...] When one partner makes a commitment to change their approach and their responses, on a consistent basis, their relationship will change."

The Gottman Institute

It's normal for couples to struggle navigating chronic relationship disconnection, tension, and defensiveness. Our brain’s ability to be aware of these signals is a phenomenon called neuroception.

Learn how to recognize the safety system of your relationship and create a secure space for your feelings.

The Gottman Institute

We've all heard it before "It’s not what you said, it’s how you said it.”

Approach tough conversations with a Softened Start-Up.

The Gottman Institute

Tough conversations are better than no communication at all. Get yourself "75% of the way to a happy marriage" with these 4 tips backed by research.

The Gottman Institute

A healthy relationship requires a balance of assertive self-expression paired with an ability to selflessly consider your partner’s needs.

Explore the five common myths about conflict in premarital relationships.

The Mistake I Made With My Grieving Friend

huffpost.com The author of We Need to Talk reveals how she learned to help -- and not help -- a friend with loss.

The Gottman Institute

Surely, with 24 hours in a day, we can all find at least one person to be thankful for. Learn how Kristen Manieri leveled-up her gratitude practice with 365 "thank you" notes.

The Gottman Institute

According to Zach Brittle, MA, LMHC, and Certified Gottman Therapist, “The Four Horsemen are—simply put—behaviors that [...] represent unkind and unkempt strategies that partners often employ with one another."

Learn how to identify the four troublesome signs in your relationship.

#givingthanks

Things I've learned from my clients and fellow travelers.

Motivation Monday

3 Keys to Intimacy

dbrentdawson.com Intimacy exists on three levels.  Breadth refers to the number of activities and interests the spouses share. The greater the number of activities and int

The Gottman Institute

People raised in neglectful or chaotic homes develop protective strategies that make it especially hard to build healthy adult relationships. Here's how they can better cope.

The Gottman Institute

"Sometimes, we outlaw our own grief, failing to give value to our feelings; seeing the tears as intruders that must be defended against."

Gottman Relationship Blog contributor, Jonathan Trotter, shares observations gleaned from their time spent trudging through the valley of grief, lessons learned from those who comforted and others who tried along the way.

The Gottman Institute

Trauma generates painful emotions that are hard to live with, but ignoring them can have serious consequences. Here’s what to do instead.

The Gottman Institute

“These days, there’s no harm in sharing it,” Andrews said. “I think everybody knows the great work it can do. And anybody that is lucky enough to have it, afford it and take advantage of it, I think it would be wonderful.”

The Gottman Institute

"Our brains are wired to keep us safe, to detect danger and send us warning signals. What is often labeled as codependency is actually our brain trying to look for safety and make sense of our reality." - Anna Aslanian, LMFT. Read more on the Gottman Relationship Blog.

The Gottman Institute

Outdoor preschools are becoming more popular nationwide, encouraging kids to spend more time in nature. Washington just became the first state in the country to officially license them.

The Gottman Institute

Admitting that you need help or a moment to yourself requires courage in its starkest form: vulnerability.

Vulnerability means baring your truth to other people, and removing the mask we often present to the world, and doing so takes guts.

The Gottman Institute

Here's why why raising brilliant kids starts with redefining brilliant.

The Gottman Institute

A flower won’t bloom until conditions are supportive. Similarly, our tender heart won’t open and reveal its beautiful secrets unless we feel internally safe.

The Gottman Institute

New studies show that men don’t experience or express anxiety in the same way as women. That could be affecting men’s access to treatment, and their mental health.

The Gottman Institute

Shutting your brain off can provide some rest in certain situations, but it’s just one of the several forms of rest that help us to recharge. #SelfCareSunday

The Gottman Institute

Burnout, sometimes known as compassion fatigue, is common among helping professionals because they are routinely exposed to the trauma and anxiety of others.

The Gottman Institute

When we see someone struggling, we want to fix it for them, but sometimes we unintentionally add fuel to the fire. Here are 8 things not to say to someone who deals with anxiety, and what actually helps.

The Gottman Institute

“I don’t claim to know what fuel works best for everyone, but what I know for sure is that I believe in love’s promise and I run best on love.” — Brené Brown 💗

The Gottman Institute

Conflict is unavoidable when living with another person, but whether a fight tears down or builds up the relationship depends on how the couple behaves in its aftermath.

TED

"Shame is highly, highly correlated with addiction, depression, violence, aggression, bullying, suicide, eating disorders." — Brené Brown

Watch the full TED Talk here: http://t.ted.com/Wi2EKdf