About Micki Lavin-Pell

My name is Micki Lavin-Pell, and I am a marriage and family therapist/Dating Coach. I have been practicing for the last 9 years. Recently, I have decided to offer my services over the internet in order to enable people who either live in hard to reach areas to have accessable and affordable counselling, and in order to help people with small children to be able to attend counselling after working hours without having to hire a baby sitter.

My approach to marriage counselling/ Dating Coaching is fairly simple and straightforward. I attempt to ascertain what it is that the couple are looking for when they come to see a therapist. In other words, I create a space for the couple to share with one another in a safe space so that they may put into words what they actually want to be different in their lives. I take couples on trips down memory lane to help them remember the good times, so that they can re-establish this when things appear to be spiralling out of control. In addition, I try to get the couple to think through their own family history, i.e. what they remember about their own parents relationship while they were growing up, and how their parents worked through some of the similar difficulties that the couple may currently be experiencing. My approach to couples therapy is aimed at helping the individuals in the relationship to see what their pattern of interaction is, and to help them to understand each person's role in perpetuating the difficulties that they may be experiencing.
In working with individuals, my aim is to help them to create the relationship that they would like. My clients have shared with me that they often find this really difficult to do on their own as they often find that they don't have very good relationship models to draw from. We help to establish any relationship blockages or barriers, help clients to underrstand what they may have done in the past to sabotage their relationships, so that they can choose a different way of being. I also offer a workshop called Dating with a Difference, which I co-created with Linda Bezalely, Dating Coach. This is a really fun alternative to one-on-one coaching and is offered.

Check out Micki's website: www.relationship-renovation.com

Getting the Kids Back to School After Break Time

Everyone has a tough time getting back into the swing of reality after the holidays. After all how much fun is it to be able to stay up late, play with friends and do no home work...The key to getting your child to feel happy about going to school after the holidays is to make every day feel like a mini holiday.

If your child is in primary school, plan one fun activity with them every day. Make sure you prime your child for the fun activity before they go back to school, so that the have something to look forward to when returning to school. This activity can range from building something, baking, playing with a favorite toy, gardening, painting, dancing to some music, you name it. Whatever you choose, make it fun for the both of you, and make sure to have all the materials ready for the first day of school. This will help you to enjoy your day more, and create a much nicer environment for the entire family. It will also help keep your child from dreading going back to school.

If your child is in high school, help them to nurture positive friendships, and think of safe/fun activities for them. Encourage and enable them togather materials they need for their activities. Even if they have an after school job, the key to enjoying life is to make some self time every day. The younger one is when they learn it, the better set up they are to having a life filled with fun and laughter.

Instilling fun in ones day everyday is the key to life long success, and a happy family. Having fun and being successfull go hand in hand.

Check out Micki's website: www.relationship-renovation.com