In school you were always taught about the American Dream. You learned how people risked their lives to come to the United States of America to live out their dreams of happiness and freedom. Part of those dreams was and is to have a family and live a happy life. In today’s age, we are almost pressured into conforming to this dream of getting married and having a family. Everyone wants to know when you are going to settle down and have a family. With the rise of technology, there are a large variety of dating websites on the internet to help make this dream a reality. These websites are growing every day in acceptance and popularity. The growing usage of these sites shows that we still want to be able to get married and have children, but are we trying too hard? Are we overlooking deep meaning in our relationships just to take care of our superficial wants and needs?
Earning his Doctorate Degree in Counseling and Clinical Supervision from the University of North Carolina Charlotte, Dr. Gerald Brown is owner and founder of Inner Compass Counseling, Coaching, and Consulting in Cornelius, North Carolina. Jerry is a licensed professional counselor with extensive training in trauma, family, couples and Latino issues. He provides counseling, life coaching, and counseling in English and Spanish. He also works as a counselor at the Center for Military Families and Veterans at Central Piedmont Community College. Jerry’s research interests include resilience, military issues, multicultural issues, and first generation college minorities in education. He has over 7 years of counseling experience in school, college, and community mental health settings.
To find out more about Dr. Gerald Brown and his practice, Inner Compass Counseling, Coaching, and Consulting, you can visit their website at or call (704) 302-6434 for an appointment.
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Having trouble understanding your partner?
We all go through life trying to understand who we are and what we are meant to do. We have to learn how to differentiate our needs from our wants and truly discover who we are. It is difficult for us to do this for ourselves and even more challenging to understand someone else’s needs and wants. When we come into a relationship we have to learn to acknowledge and share our own needs and wants as well as discover our partner’s needs and wants. We do this so that we can understand each other and our motives in life so that we can better communicate and coexist. But, how do we know exactly what motivates us in life? How would knowing what motivates our lives benefit our relationships?
Earning her Master’s Degree in Social Work from Fordham University in New York City, Mrs. Patricia Pirone is the Senior Vice President of Pratt Assessments. While attending graduate school, Patricia worked extensively with children in foster care. After earning her Master’s in Social Work, she began working in an outpatient mental health clinic with children, adolescents, and families. In 2010, Patricia started her private practice where she returned to clinical work with children, adolescents and adults. Over the next several years Patricia grew the practice and in 2014 decided to create Pratt Assessments and began selling a tool that revolutionized her practice. Pratt Assessments is the parent company to Touchstone Assessments, Elevate Assessments, and Assessment Athletics.
To find out more about Mrs. Patricia Pirone and her practice, Elevate Assessments, you can visit their website or call (704) 350-2380 for an appointment.
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Are Your Relationship Expectations Realistic?
We all have our own set of expectations in every aspect of life. We have a set of expectations when it comes to work. Whether it’s our tasks at work, work atmosphere, or job duties, we come into work with what we think will happen. When these expectations are not met at work, we often find ourselves unhappy and wanting to find something better. We look for a place that matches well with our personalities and shares a common goal to what we want to do in line so that we are happy with the work we are doing. What happens when our expectations and reality don’t correlate in our relationships? We don’t want to throw away all the hard work that we’ve put in. So, what can we do to help alleviate some of the tension that occurs when our expectations aren’t realistic in our relationships?
Earning her Master’s Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from East Carolina University, Ms. Melissa Staley is a Managing Partner for Foundations Family Therapy in – Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina. Melissa has extensive experience working with a wide range of mental health settings and specialties. She has worked in a non-profit specializing in Multi-Systemic Therapy, worked with adolescents with behavioral difficulties and their families, taught anger and frustrations management, communication, positive thinking, and social interaction, worked in a detox and mental health crisis stabilization center and she has conducted clinical assessments and facilitated therapy groups. Melissa currently works with individuals, couples, families and children ages 4 and up. She has completed the Level 2 training in Gottman Method Couples Therapy and certified as a PREPARE/ENRICH facilitator.
To find out more about Ms. Melissa Staley and her practice, Foundations Family Therapy, you can visit their website or call (919) 285-4802 for an appointment.
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