Looking for the positive, even when it's difficult

My very athletic son is having some serious knee surgeries. He has missed two years of high school sports and may miss his last season also. He has been taking it fairly well. It has been so hard to see him in emotional and physical pain. I had to work with myself to see the "silver lining" in this. First off, he should (!) have his knee issues resolved and should (!) be able to live a very active life into his adulthood. Second, it's taught him that life can throw you curveballs, and it's up to us how we respond to it. My hope is that he becomes more resilient from this experience- I know I have. As parents we naturally want to keep our children from pain and dissappointments. Ah, but they learn and grow so much from those difficult situations! Adaptation and resiliency are two very positive things that can come from adversities. If you look for it, you will find it.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

November 2011 Newsletter!

Image
Newsletter November 2011 Kettle Moraine Counseling Clinic News : We are sad to announce that Bill Driscoll and Anne Warren are both leaving us, and we wish them the best of luck in the future! Tricia Schutz is doing a talk on children and trauma at the Family Center, website address http://www.wcfamilycenter.org/ for more information. Tammy Ricke and Lester Menke are both up and running and seeing adults and couples. Some of the clinics’ specialities include art therapy with children/adolescents/adults, attachment therapy, and couples work. We take most insurance including Medicaid and Badgercare, and offer flexible appointments. Referrals can come in by calling the clinic or by emailing, and we can check your insurance benefits before the appointment. Contact Dorothy for insurance information: 262.388.9425 or Dorothy@kettlemorainecounseling.com. Thank you for considering us and also recommending our services! Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays, and I enjoyed reading
Read more

It’s been a while….

Image
  This week I had to say goodbye to two long term clients, and although I felt sad to end with them, I also feel happy for their new beginnings, and so grateful for the time I got to spend with them.  I am so fortunate to be able to do the work I do, to get close to others in ways we often do not in day to day life.  One client was with me 4 years and the other 13 plus. Both are moving on to new phases of their lives, new adventures! And I love new adventures! My newest adventure will be becoming a grandmother in a few months.  As my daughter grows my granddaughter inside her, I am growing in the idea of stepping into a grandmother role.  Life keeps moving along, and us with it.  Saying goodbye to clients causes me to reflect on how important they have been to me, how I have grown as a therapist over the years, and my heart is full with love and gratitude.  Fall, a time for letting go.  They will remain in my heart!  And I will remain blessed to have had the time with them, and gratefu
Read more

Passive Agressive

So many of us are not comfortable with expressing our anger or sharing what our needs are so we resort to passive aggressive behavior in an attempt to communicate what we are feeling or what we want. Problem is, this behavior does not get our needs met and it usually brings distance to a relationship rather than closeness. What is passive aggressive behavior? A definition is a pattern of behavior where you where one reflects hostility or resentment through indirec t means. The bottom line is that we do not feel that we can express ourselves directly or we don't know how too, but our feelings come out in other ways: procrastination, "forgetting", sarcasm, not doing things well, talking behind people's backs, etc. Some examples from my personal life is my mother, who always had a difficult time saying how she felt, would get sick or have a headache (like clockwork) when an event approached that she did not want to go to, but felt like she couldn't say no. Passive ag
Read more