• February 2015 Newsletter Square Logo

    Bridge to Wholeness | Volume 2 Issue 2 February 2015

    Welcome to the February 2015 Issue of the Agape newsletter, Bridge to Wholeness! Our monthly newsletter is the best way for you to keep up with what is going on around Agape, with events and updates, and articles written by our counselors. We hope it will help bring you a little bit closer to emotional, mental, and spiritual wholeness! In this issue (click to read individual articles): How to Build Trust In Relationships by Darrell Provinse, MA, LPC, NCC The Best Valentine’s Gift: Another Chance by Cathy Downen, MA, MA, PLPC 10 Unhelpful Marital & Relationship Thought Patterns by Kathyrn Manley, MS, LPC, CST  Unraveling the Enigma of the Autism…

  • Ten Unhelpful Marital and Relationship Thought Patterns

    Ten Unhelpful Marital and Relationship Thought Patterns

    It’s natural to interpret what is happening around us.  As humans, we are continually interpreting our past, our present and our future as well as our relationships with others, our relationship with ourselves and our relationship with God. Many times the interpretation of circumstances in our lives is accurate, but sometimes it can be distorted due to fears of rejection, abandonment, failure, need for control, approval or perfectionism.  The way we feel, therefore, can interfere with how we think. Below is a list of some ways couples might struggle with distorted thoughts and communication patterns in their relationship. Ten Unhelpful Marital and Relationship Thought Patterns: Filtering. We magnify the negative…

  • Jan 2015 square newsletter logo

    Bridge to Wholeness | Volume 2 Issue 1 January 2015

    Welcome to the January 2015 Issue of the Agape newsletter, Bridge to Wholeness! Our monthly newsletter is the best way for you to keep up with what is going on around Agape, with events and updates, and articles written by our counselors. We hope it will help bring you a little bit closer to emotional, mental, and spiritual wholeness! In this issue (click to read individual articles): How to Forgive the Unforgivable by Cathy Downen, MA, MA, PLPC ‘Parenting the Love and Logic Way’ Comes to Agape by Kathy Bleitner, MEd, LPC New Beginnings: Rebuilding and Repairing Relationships by Kathryn Manley, MS, LPC, CST Gospel Driven Parenting by Carolyn Knarr, MSW, LCSW…

  • Restoring and Repairing Relationships Agape Counseling St Louis

    New Beginnings: Rebuilding and Repairing Relationships

    Couples frequently come to my office with relational injuries, wondering if their marriage can be repaired. Individuals and couples may feel there has been such damage and destruction in the relationship that any hope of making amends, repairing the damage, is hopeless. Restoration and redemption in relationships is available through Christ.  As we enter this new year, I am led to encourage Agape readers that in Christ, all things are possible.  If you are having trouble communicating with your partner, especially during the process of healing, you may find that learning new patterns of communication can be difficult. According to psychologist and researcher John Gottman, repairing relationships during and after…