Don Lasell
Adolescent Depression
Sophia was concerned about her son. Danny, normally an out-going and energetic sixteen-year-old, had been down in the dumps since he and his girlfriend Lucy broke up just over two weeks ago. Since then he stopped seeing his friends and...
How Are Strong Marriages Like Healthy Gardens?
This is a question that I often put to couples who attend the premarital workshops I present. I like the question because it requires what are called "higher order thinking skills" - a more effective way of engaging new information...
Summertime Internet Safety
“Something is not right” Barb was sharing with her friend Jill over coffee, “Jessica is on the computer every night for hours, and when she is not on the computer, she’s on her cell phone.” Jill gave an empathetic groan,...
Therapeutic Writing
As the counselling session was winding up, Jack’s counsellor discussed recommendations for Jack to follow up with before their next scheduled session together. “Jack, please read this handout, it relates to a number of the points we talked about in...
Children Anxiety Strategies (Part II)
In the last issue of Psychealth we were introduced to ten year old David who was experiencing anxiety in anticipation of returning to school. Three basic strategies to help David better cope with his anxiety were introduced: the expression of...
Anxiety Management Strategies for Children
As the last days of August were drawing to a close, Ashley could already see the change taking place in her 10 year old son David. All summer long he was a typical carefree child enjoying the freedom of summer...
When Sorry Isn’t Enough
Sue felt frustrated and alone. She and Jack had just had another spat, again over something which to her seemed trivial. As of late conflicts were happening more and more frequently between them, with Jack taking longer and longer to...
Stop the Blame Game
The day had only just begun and already Tom and Jan were blaming each other. "Did you remember to call Mom yesterday about sitting for us on Saturday?" asked Tom with a slight edge to his voice. "No, I was...
