Encouraging Thought:
Self knowledge is the creative wisdom to move beyond our limitations.
Optimism and Hope - like helplessness and despair, can be learned.
Daniel
Goleman
Emotional Intelligence
David's training is in experiential psychotherapies such as gestalt, bioenergetics,
psychomotor, and psychodynamic therapy. This training came in the early stages of
his career as he realized the depth and intensity of life stories. More specifically,
this highlighted his sense that what happens to us experientially remains with us.
Clearly, each of us is affected by our experiences so that unfinished business is
a powerful "determinant." "Unfinished business" refers to any experience residing
in you that can be triggered by something in the here and now. This results in depression,
Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, emotional conflict, relationship problems, yearnings
of the soul, or dissatisfaction with life. Psychotherapy and experiential growth
work provide the sacred space for healing and transformation of one's self, one's
past experiences. Each healing journey is "tailored" to your individual needs and
requirements.
As these experiential modalities jelled, his interests moved beyond
traditional psychotherapeutic experiences. Later, he completed a Vision Quest with
Animus Valley Institute to learn more about Native American forms of Spirituality.
This was followed by the Advanced Medicine Wheel Training to become acquainted with
Peruvian/Andean forms of energy work. He then enrolled in the STAR(Soul Transformation
and Repatterning) Process three year training which allowed him to further refine
the integration of psychotherapy and energy techniques. The ultimate experience was
a two week Peru journey with Juan de Nunez del Prado, a Peruvian anthropologist.
Collectively, his therapy journeys focus on personal and progressive integration
of the mind, body, spirit connection through satisfying the soul. This is a journey
into wholeness. With this in mind, he fully understands that each path is different
and that your goals/desires are the ultimate requirement of your work.
Book Review
Heartful Parenting: Connected Parenting & Emotional Intelligence
by David
E. Myers, Ph.D.
A couple months ago, Dr. Myers sent me his book to review and I promised him I would
review it in my August Parenting Newsletter. I would recommend this book to parents
who want to give their children perhaps the most important gift they can—heightened
emotional intelligence.
Research has been done that shows emotional intelligence is
more predictive of life success and happiness than intellectual intelligence. You
can be very book smart but if you aren’t in tune with people, you are less likely
to succeed than if you are in tune with yourself and others emotionally.
He makes
some excellent points that I wholeheartedly agree with. For example on page 98, Dr.
Myers writes, “In an all-out war between parents and child, the child will win, usually
at a great cost to her.” This is so true. He also provides excellent advice for things
to do and things to avoid as a parent. He focuses on the importance of having a positive
relationship with your child and distinguishes between discipline as teaching and
discipline as punishment. He has a chapter dedicated to communication and provides
good guidelines for how to communicate with your child.
Overall, I liked this book
and would recommend it for parents seeking to be better than “good enough” parents.
Review by Kim Oliver,
MS, NCC, LPC of the Relationship Center
to view my Peru Trip Pics
I have finally had the opportunity to look at your manuscript
and liked it. You have done what you set out to do. You
addressed complicated issues-making them sound simpler
than they are and hence comprehensible.
Your questions and pitfalls are extremely helpful and are an
interesting way of demanding self-examination. I do feel
that a reader will still say, “how can you make it sound so
simple by breading it down into many components, yet I
find it isn't.” This cognitive approach is surely a helpful way
to bread down the deepseated feelings of helplessness
which dog parents and parenting, but you might want to
acknowledge more openly that this cognitive approach is
only a first step, and do not despair if that, too fails.
For there may be deeper issues or ghosts in your own
nursery (Frailberg) that need to be addressed. Your last
chapter does that, but it sounds as if it needed a recognition
of failure before a therapeutic liaison would come about.
I'd rather see the need for support and addressing these
ghosts as a positive step in parenting, not as a failure.
Your excellent cognitive approach allows for that.
Sincerely,
T. Berry Brazelton, M.D.
Chief, Child Develoment Unit, The Children's Hospital
Çlincical Professor of Pediatrics
Harvard Medical School.