• Just Love Yourself

    Just Love Yourself

      Just Love Yourself! How can you demonstrate patience if you are not patient and kind with yourself? How can you be forgiving if you are judgmental and unforgiving toward yourself? How can you show mercy and compassion to others if you are critical of yourself? How can you have healthy boundaries if you are unable to set and maintain boundaries with yourself? How can you truly love another if you have rejected yourself? Transforming relationships with others is important, yet we often forget about transforming the relationship we each have with our own self. As many of us know, it’s truly difficult to have healthy relationships with others if…

  • 15 MORE Books Recommended By Counselors

    15 MORE Books Recommended by Agape Counselors

    As promised last month, here is another list of books that our counselors recommend. There are many books out there that our counselors recommend to clients regularly. Below are 15 of the books that are on the list. Click on the pictures to view these books on Amazon.com Book Store.   How We Love by Milan & Kay Yerkovich This book, based on attachment theory, helps people understand how childhood experiences have shaped the way they approach adult relationships. It has a lot of examples to clarify points as well as a workbook to help people change what they want to change in themselves and their relationships. Recommend for couples.   Personality Plus…

  • Living Life Abundantly During Christmas & Holidays

    Living Life Abundantly During the Holidays

    We all know that Christmas should be a time of joy, but the reality for many is very different. The holidays can be a challenging season of managing thoughts, feelings and behaviors. Sometimes, family stresses can be greatly exaggerated and even become intolerable over the holiday period when everyone is forced to spend time together, trying to put the best behavior forward and trying to keep things cheerful. Sometimes needing approval for creating the “perfect Christmas” can result in feelings of anxiety and being rushed. For some, the holidays can be a very lonely time. This time of year can be a reminder that we are out of contact with…

  • Adolescent Girls Transition to Adulthood

    Adolescent Girls: The Transition from Childhood to Adulthood

    By Megan Jung, MA, LPC *note: this article has been edited for readability, for the original, scholarly article, click here: Jung Aug 2015 Original Article – Adolescent Girls “Olivia, get the lead out of your pants and get a purpose,” Granny often barked at her sixteen year-old granddaughter. My friend and I laughed about her grandmother’s nerve and willingness to say what many others would not. Adolescent girls are dramatic and numb, tragic and over-simplifiers, chaotic and clawing for control, and fluctuate between unmediated sorrow and joy within minutes. Many of us can empathize with Granny, and often want to scream, “Grow up! It’s not that big of a deal, and…