Kellevision

What a Difference a Year Makes!

Hello loyal readers.  I apologize for my absence, but I had to get some things straight in my own life.  So I quit my job working for an abusive boss and asked myself what kind of counseling I would do if I could any kind at all.  I've seen a lot of violence and I've learned that there is only so much I can do to stop it.  Though I can't change the entire world, I can create a safe place in my little corner of it.  And if there are two things I want most in this world, it is to save children and animals from violence.  So I created a nonprofit organization which rescues animals, rehabilitates them and works with them to provide animal assisted therapy to children who have experienced violence.  We are small, but growing and you can visit the website for my new organization, TherapyWorks.

As for this blog, I shall now take up my "pen" and try to return to regular posts.  I am reading all of your comments during this past year (I'll try to catch up on responding to them) and appreciate your patience. 

"If you don't live what you sing about your mirror is going to find out." 
Ani DiFranco,  "The Million You Never Made"

 

 

Saviors and Warriors

I watched a social worker trying to "save" a woman from a domestic violence situation.  It was disturbing to say the least.

Children, Psychotropic Medications and Death

Jung at Heart writes about "Things to Worry About" on his blog.  His worries?  Overmedicated children.

To "Heal" or not to "Heal"...

... that is the question.  A veteran of Vietnam was talking about his experiences in Vietnam, about coming home and about the trauma he experienced and about how others believed he should react to that trauma.  The mental health professionals, the V.A., his family and his friends all wanted him to "heal".  But what they meant by "heal" was to forget, to stop talking about it, to move forward as if nothing happened.  But he disagrees.  He doesn't want to "heal".  He wants to remember.

"I hate war. I can't wait for it to begin."

I listened to this veteran of the "war" in Iraq and understood what he meant.  I've seen this with abused children and victims of domestic violence.  It's a curious feeling - unless you've been there.

When Childhood Bipolar Disorder - Isn't

I really have a problem with the recent surge in diagnosing children with Bipolar Disorder.  The children I see with this diagnosis are often the victims of serious issues at home, issues which may even include abuse.  Some struggle with PTSD and the mood swings which are inherent in a traumatized individual are attributed to "Bipolar Disorder" and medicated. 

Are We Thinking Beings Which Feel or Feeling Beings Which Think?

It seems most Americans like to think of themselves as thinking beings who happen to feel.  But research into the human brain shows that we are instead feeling beings who are able to think.  I believe our failure to recognize this causes untold frustration and the current epidemic of people being diagnosed with depression.

Relationship Patterns

If you find yourself making the same mistakes over and over you might want to look at your relationship patterns.

Why Healthy Boundaries are Important in Relationships

Therapists talk a lot about boundaries, but we're not always clear what we mean by "boundaries", why they are important to an individual's mental health, or why they are important for healthy relationships.  

Power Games

Claude Steiner, author of "Scripts People Live" describes power struggles and maintains that there are two reasons people attempt to use power against others and two kinds of power which can be utilized to bring others under one's control.