Make an Appointment: karen.skerrett@gmail.com | 630-292-4108
In my research and clinical work, I often help individuals and couples identify a unifying theme for their lives, an issue that recurs and can be said to summarize the pattern (s) in a life. Once a theme is clarified, individuals can use it to build and embellish a story around it. For example:
During these early weeks of a new year, both my inbox and brain are filled to the brim with messages about the value of resolutions. As a therapist, I regularly encourage the notion of “new beginnings and change making. I coach reflection on the components of the good life, on setting intentions and goal making. Yet, I strongly resonate with the words of one of my favorite NYT...
The Pandemic, ongoing national and international crises continue to strain our coping resources to the limit. Our individual and collective resilience is being tested in unprecedented ways. Resilience, or the ability to learn from adversities and emerge stronger is a great goal in theory yet often tough to carry out in practice. We hear how meditation can decrease our anxiety,...
“Life hangs on a narrative thread. This thread is a braid of stories that inform us about who we are and where we come from and where we might go. The thread is slender but strong. We trust it to hold us and allow us to swing over the edge of the known into the future we dream in words.” ~Christina Baldwin At the heart of my work is the conviction that human beings are first...
What is the role of positivity in couple therapy? Jefferson Singer & Karen Skerrett shared highlights from their recent book, Positive Couple Therapy: Using we-stories to build resilience (Routledge Press; www.we-stories.com) with the Imago audience at their annual conference held in Washington DC from Oct. 29th through Nov. 1, 2014. All couple therapies, from Integrative...
This Valentine’s Day, Give a We-Story along with Flowers! It’s a week before Valentine’s Day and Jack and Heather are in another session of couple therapy. They have been working hard on trying to improve their communication and reduce the friction in their marriage. They’ve tried listening strategies, date nights, appreciation exercises, everything under the sun, but...