Communication:  we may speak and think we listen, but do we really connect with and understand the impact of our words or the message our partner is trying to send our way?  It's not just what we say, but the way we say it.   It's also what we don't say.    So many of the couples I work with hit barriers to intimacy because they don't take the time to slow down and be in the moment with their partner, speak without reflecting back that what they have heard, jump over feelings and important points expressed by their partners, and stay focused on their own experience without demonstrating they can see things from their partner's point of view.

 

In this workshop, we will explore ways to transform barriers to intimacy including speaking and listening from the heart, hearing the feelings under words, working with triggers that arise in conversation, slowing down to be present with self and ones partner, and learning to put words on what we really need.  Contact Margaret at msarndt@verizon.net

While traditional health care seems to focus more on treating illness than promoting health, the tides may be turning based on some current work at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. An April 16 article in the Wall Street Journal,noted that the CDC is using measures of "well-being," which includes mental and physical health, "to develop a more holistic approach to disease prevention and health promotion."

"Well-being" as a metric allows us to move beyond biochemical frameworks to include the human factor: having supportive relationships is one of the strongest predictors of well-being.