Advice on Grief and Loss and Addiction

Many addicts in the early stages of recovery will experience grief and a sense of profound loss. Robert Weiss LCSW, recently published a thought provoking article about the role of grief and loss in addiction recovery. Weiss suggests that addicts and family members in the early stages of recovery may not have considered the strong role that the grief process...[ read more ]

Losing a parent can be one of the most traumatic experiences you will ever face. While some factors may make the grief process more complex, such as unresolved conflict with the parent, or the way in which the parent died, the loss of a parent has a lasting impact in your life. In some situations, this grief may lead to...[ read more ]

Developmental disorder trauma in children has the potential to be disruptive to a child well beyond childhood. These traumas, if unresolved, can pose significant challenges to the adult child in their life, socially, and otherwise. This new approach to looking at childhood trauma helps us understand how interventions can assist children and adult survivors of traumatic events or pasts. This...[ read more ]

Knowing if you should take your child in to see a therapist can be very challenging. Especially when it comes to young children who don’t have the emotional or communication skills to verbalize what they need or how they’re feeling. Therapy can be very helpful for kids. It can teach children healthy coping skills,  how to understand, articulate and express...[ read more ]

Divorces involving children can be especially challenging- and draining, for all parties involved.  While you may have seen the writing on the walls for some time, a divorce often feels very sudden to the children involved. The sudden breakdown of the family structure after a divorce can be traumatic for children. Children often experience feelings of abandonment, confusion and loss....[ read more ]

John Pavlovitz recently wrote an article that has been making its way around Facebook. John’s article talks about the support that people need after they experience a loss. He talks about how people are very present immediately after a loss, and that they continue to be supportive and helpful up until the funeral. After the funeral, there is a significant...[ read more ]

You never expected your child to be glad that you were getting a divorce. You knew they would be sad, probably confused and maybe even worried- but this anger? It’s intense. You struggle as you want to stay connected with your child, you want them to know that you are there for them- no matter what- and most importantly, you...[ read more ]

A colleague wrote this article today about talking with your children about mass shootings. Never a topic any parent wanted to have to discuss but we can’t afford not to. Our children need to be heard, and to feel understood.   The post Talking to children about mass shootings appeared first on Mountain View Therapy.

It’s not easy to talk about depression, yet the problem is fairly common. Only about 50 percent of adolescents with depression are diagnosed before reaching adulthood. During the teenage years, there’s about a 20 percent chance of having depression or anxiety, research suggests. Suicide remains the leading cause of death for children aged 10 to 17. This week the American Academy...[ read more ]

Play therapy can help children cope with divorce. Even in the most amicable of separations, children feel the effects of divorce. They experience the stress of their parents, as well as their own anxiety and fears, whether conscious or unconscious, about a number of questions. For example: “Was it my fault? Will I get to see mommy or daddy when...[ read more ]