Recommended Books for Contested Child Custody Issues
You’ve separated from your child’s other parent. Life is tough, and litigation is messy. You are looking for good resources anywhere you can find it. • Do try a support group. • Do consult a...
Lifestyle
Sometimes the hurdles we face can feel overwhelming and paralyzing. Balancing home and work with parenthood is hard enough. Add in a struggling relationship or a difficult separation and we are stretched thin.
We are growing this category (with suggestions from you!) to bring you a little extra inspiration and a lot of awesome (life) tips from some of the leading therapists, yogis, self care gurus, and all around amazing people we know and love.
Our Favorites:
Tips for a Successful Mediation
Mediation works when it is done right. It can be a fabulous way of reducing animosity, finalizing a divorce quickly and efficiently, keeping your personal life and private details more confidential, saving money and resolving...
5 Relationship Insights We’ve Learned as Divorce Lawyers
Despite our own mistakes, and the many we have seen, we are still believers in love and commitment. For every client we’ve helped through a messy breakup, we’ve had the privilege of hearing their story....
Three Little-Known Communication Tools to Improve Your Relationships
Many people have cats or dogs in their lives, and others may call birds, fish, rabbits, and turtles their companions. But today I actually want to talk to you about porcupines. That’s right, porcupines. Specifically,...
Is Your Style of Communication Getting in the Way of Your Relationships?
Have you ever been in conversation with your loved ones and just found it impossible to really, truly, communicate? Like, no matter how carefully you tried to explain your point of view the whole conversation...
What Are the Tools in Your Emotional First-Aid Kit?
What’s an emotional first aid kit? It’s a set of practices, behaviours, and creative interventions I’ve cultivated over the years that helps me support my body, mind, heart, and soul when times are particularly tough...
Overwhelm: The Three-Ingredient Cure
Much has been written about the seemingly impossible standards and relentlessly full plates most of us have across all areas of our lives — and I probably don’t need to tell you how much stress,...
Three Nitty Gritty Truths About Making Life’s Big Choices & What to Do If You’re Feeling Stuck
One of the most common things I hear in my therapy practice goes something along the lines of this: “I feel stuck. I just don’t know what to do or how to make choices about...
Four Effective Tools For Managing Anxiety
Anxiety is a normal and natural human emotion that everyone experiences at times. And, like with most things in life, anxiety exists on a spectrum — from butterflies in your stomach before speaking up in...
A Pep Talk for Those Times When You’re Struggling
A Pep Talk from Me to You… I know you’re having a hard time right now. You’re not feeling so great, mentally, physically, overall… You’re wishing this time would pass, that things would be back...
My Personal Tip Sheet for Robust Mental Health
Maintaining your mental health is just as important, if not more important, than your physical health when you’re going through a tough divorce. Don’t get us wrong, we want you healthy and happy on the...
“What if I Never Meet The One?”
Asking “What if I never meet The One?” is a potentially scary, vulnerable, and often triggering question to contemplate. Imagining ourselves without The One – a romantic partner, a great love, a lifetime spouse –...
Our Favorite Uplifting Quotes to Live By
Sometimes, the hurdles we face can feel overwhelming and paralyzing. Balancing home and work with parenthood is hard enough. Add in a struggling relationship or a difficult separation, and we are stretched thin. We decided...
101 Self-Care Suggestions for When It All Feels Like Too Much
There may be some days, weeks, months, maybe even years when – for whatever reason – just getting through the day, or going to work, or putting one foot in front of the other feels...
Our Favorite Resources for Life after Separation
On average, 4,800 Americans get divorced per day. You are certainly not alone. Yet at times it feels like you are the only person getting a divorce. Parting ways after years of living together is...
Three Steps to Expanding & Growing During Challenging Times
Oftentimes in life we find ourselves in what appears to be a difficult and painful situation. Divorce is a great example. Divorce. Life is not going the way we dreamed about or expected. When this...
Is Your Spouse a “Training Partner”?
If you are thinking of divorce, you may have what I call a “training partner.” I learned this from my years of studying Aikido and martial arts. In the dojo, you can’t get better unless...
Best Practices for Supporting Students with Learning Disabilities in a Split Household
Even ‘happily’ married couples have difficulty effectively supporting their children. In some cases, especially when the parents have a child or children with a disability, the parents need to be even more united and consistent...
Pre-Leaving Checklist
If you have one foot out the door, you may be tempted to run and as fast as you can. But before you do, it’s important to do a few things to be as prepared...
It’s Over: The Checklist You Need for Your New Beginning
It’s over. Officially. But, now what? As a divorce lawyer for the last 12+ years, I can tell you that – as crazy as it sounds – sometimes one of the most difficult parts of...
Worksheet: Designing a Self-Care Plan (That You’ll Actually Follow)
One of my favorite quotes about self-care comes from my friend and colleague Annie Wright, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who runs Annie Wright Psychotherapy, based in Berkeley. “Self-care doesn’t always look like sleep,...
How a divorce financial planner can ease your transition
Every month, I offer a workshop to women in my community who are either contemplating or in the early stages of divorce. At every Second Saturday workshop we invite a therapist, and a family law...
Worksheet: Goal Setting for Life Post-Divorce
Set yourself up for success post-divorce with our new worksheet. We'll help you identify a goal and think through all the steps it will take to make it a reality. Your next chapter is waiting...
Illness, Kids & Co-Parenting: How to Cope
One Friday afternoon when I was 34, I was having some follow-up testing done after a “funny” breast MRI, and ended up with a breast cancer diagnosis. My six year-old daughter was on her way...
How to Talk to Your Ex About Spousal and Child Support
Alimony/spousal support is one of the most difficult issues to negotiate. These tips and strategies will help you navigate the spousal support converstion with your ex.
I’m a Divorced Dad, and This is My Best Advice for Co-Parenting Your Kids
You’ll find yourself doing a lot of things you didn’t ever expect to be doing on your own as a newly divorced dad. I did. Along the way, there were a few things I learned...
You’ve Been Dumped. Now What?
I was married and divorced by the time I turned 30. Not long after that, I entered what I like to call a “charitable rebound” that lasted about two years. After we “officially” moved in...
5 Awesome Post-Breakup Services You Didn’t Know You Needed
When you’re the founder of a post-breakup concierge service, you get to know a lot of interesting people offering interesting services that help people move past heartbreak. Here are a few services that we connect...
Divorced Dads: Do These 5 Things
For some of us divorced dads, the approach of any holiday, from Mother’s Day to Valentine’s Day, is enough to bring on the cold sweats. Relax. Survival, even redemption, is attainable — and it’s not...
Worksheet: Dating After Divorce – Introducing (or Meeting) a New Partner when Kids are in the Picture
Whether you're introducing a new partner, meeting a new partner, or *are* the new partner, our worksheet will help you prepare for this meeting, while considering the potential concerns and points of view from everyone...
Meditations and Mantras to Help You Stay Positive During Divorce
Even 15 years in, there are so many times that my clients taught me valuable lessons that I have taken to heart. And I want to share a few of those with you. These are...
