This book is a “how to” manual for working with families in separation and divorce using an active, directive therapeutic process called Family Restructuring Therapy. This philosophy and effective process works well for the “normal” divorced family who need to learn new practices and patterns, and for the “high-conflict” family whose behavior patterns have become so maladaptive that the children’s well-being is at risk. A key focus is: • Looking at the needs of the child within the family • Never losing sight of the fact the children need their parents to make tough decisions and act like adults • For parents to handle their divorce and co-parenting better than they did their marriage • Learn how to communicate, parent and behave appropriately. A valuable resource for mental health professionals, and also for lawyers and the Court when trying to decide what can be done with challenging parenting battles. It is clearly not a passive approach to counselling. If you’re tired of witnessing the damage that conflict has on children and want to engage in the highly satisfying work of helping parents communicate effectively and seeing children relieved of the burden of picking sides, devour this book and get to work. --- from the publisher About the Author: Dr. Stephen Carter has worked as a Registered Psychologist since 1992. Dr. Carter works with children, adolescents and adults. Much of his work focuses on therapeutic interventions and assessments of families involved in high conflict separation and divorce. Dr. Carter assists individuals and their families in dealing with serious problems including abuse, anxiety and depression, behavioural disorders, self injurious behaviour, relationship problems and work stress. Dr. Carter has delivered many workshops, presentations and media interviews on topics such as family restructuring therapy, high conflict divorce, assessment, grief and loss, conflict resolution, behavioural disorders, school violence, stress management, ethics, effective workplaces, running a private practice and expert witness testimony. Dr. Carter’s work history includes employment as a teacher and a school counsellor prior to entering private practice. Along with working in private practice, Dr. Carter is an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Alberta. He is a registered psychologist in Alberta, Canada; a member of the Canadian Register of Health Service Providers in Psychology; and has a Certificate of Professional Qualifications / Interjurisdictional Practice Certificate from the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards. |