Making friends isn’t always something that ‘just happens’, especially for those who perhaps work in isolating ways. Loneliness seems to be getting more widespread and its consequences can be dire. So if clients are struggling to develop friendships, here are some ways we can help.
Relationships Therapy Articles by Mark Tyrrell
Relationships are the stuff of meaningful life. People need people. Most clients will have one or more relationship issues. Reams of research show us that loneliness, disconnection from family and friends, alienation cause not only mental ill health but physical problems too. So when relationships go wrong it can feel almost like an existential threat. Happiness is so often found within good relationships and when we help our clients connect in healthy ways with the people in their lives we help them thrive and form a base from which they can build ever more meaningful lives.
The World Can Float by Itself
How do your clients perceive their role in their relationships? If they feel overly responsible, that very attitude could be creating much of their distress. Here are three strategies to help clients who feel overly responsible for most everyone else.
How to Help Clients Overcome Fear of Confrontation
Confrontation isn’t always easy and doesn’t always go smoothly. But, like a bitter medicine, it may hold a cure. So what about those who just can’t confront others? If you ever work with clients who feel they would rather do anything than confront someone, I hope these ideas are useful.
Help Ease Your Client’s Adult Sibling Rivalry
Sibling rivalry can be complex. Love and envy, affection and resentment can and often do coexist within one relationship – but they make uncomfortable and messy bedfellows. Here I offer five strategies that may help you help any clients who exhibit sibling rivalry.
How to Help Your Client Overcome Fear of Rejection
The fear of rejection can stalk our minds like some mythical monster, terrorizing our dreams and casting a shadow across our every thought. Here are seven tips to help you help your clients overcome a morbid fear of rejection to live a fuller and happier life.
One Guiding Principle for Family Therapy
Family therapy is an effective treatment for a wide range of mental health and relationship problems. It can help families improve their communication skills, manage conflict, and cope with life transitions. And because families are systems, small changes can create large effects. Here I want to explore the one principle that governs so much of […]
3 Reasons Clients Stay in Abusive Relationships
It can seem baffling, infuriating even, when an abused partner stays with an abuser, even more so when they go back to them after having left. But often it is every bit as baffling and infuriating for the person being abused. So why do people stay in these relationships, and how can we help the […]
How to Stop Self Sabotage in Relationships
Self-sabotage can impact all areas of a client’s life, but relationship sabotage can be especially disruptive. I’ve worked with hundreds of relationship saboteurs over the years, and they all do similar things. Here’s what not to do when seeking to have a sustainable and happy relationship.
How to Stop Your Clients Obsessing Over Toxic Ex-Lovers
Not too long ago I was asked on a Q&A call about what might be going on when clients feel addicted to an ex even though they know consciously the person is no good for them. Listen to or read my reply to hear my take on why this happens and give a couple of […]
7 Steps to Help Your Client Resist Guilt Manipulators
If our guilt-manipulated clients can start to respond differently to those who manipulate them, they will effectively change the relationship dynamic, feel more of a sense of healthy control, and move the relationship further towards a healthy, genuinely reciprocal balance for both parties.
