Article Summaries
Do You Know Your Teen’s Love Language
14 April 2016
By Amanda Percival, Staff Therapist
One of the reasons that I pursued a career as a therapist was my desire to help strengthen others' relationships. I love to work with couples and families. Although the majority of the clients I see are teens, one common thread many of the teens have is a lack of feeling loved and acc...
Prom Night Parenting? Yes, Please!
07 April 2016
By Darcy McConnell, LADC
Prom night has sure changed over the years. After listening to teenagers talk about their plans it’s reminiscent of a mini trip to Las Vegas. The stuff that teenage dreams are made of! Hundreds of phones calls and thousands of text messages will be exchanged about plans and attire. Girls wil...
Do it Yourself Marriage Counseling
08 March 2016
By John Goetz
The idea of self-help and self-improvement has been around as long as I can remember. Dale Carnegie wrote The Art of Public Speaking in 1910 and followed it up with a series of self-help books through 1990. This past weekend I changed brake pads on my car after first consulting a You Tube video. Americans spend their w...
Unemployment: Next Steps to Recovery
18 February 2016
Belinda Crosier, LPC, LADC
“It was the best of times – and the worst of times.” So reads a quote from Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities, which could accurately describe the current economic climate in Oklahoma. We have enjoyed a mostly thriving economy in Oklahoma for some time, as evidenced by ...
Micro-aggression on the College Campus
08 February 2016
by Quinton Ellis, LPC
There was a time in my young life when the only thing I knew for sure about college was that they had toga parties. These days, the only thing I know for sure about toga parties is that they will result in your expulsion from college. Much like Christmas, (also not welcome on campus), college seemed a lot cooler ...
Your Teen Might Be Entitled If…
23 December 2015
By Darcy McConnell, LPC, LADC
What are a teenager’s rights? Hopefully we can all can agree that teens have the right to be treated as a human being by friends, family and associates. While every family is different, each teen deserves someone to provide support, comfort and to remain safe from physical and emotional violence. The...
How to Talk to Children about Grief, Loss and Tragedies
25 November 2015
By Sheila Stinnett, LPC
THIS WAX DOESN’T LEAVE A SHINE – AND IT’S DANGEROUS
28 October 2015
By Belinda Crosier
It seems there’s never an end to what people will try, in order to take the effects of a mind-altering substance to the next level. Something we’ve been hearing about that is now making news headlines, is “wax”, a highly concentrated form of marijuana, obtained through a dangerous process inv...
A Movie to see With your Teen? Yes!
28 October 2015
By Quinton Ellis, LPC
Being a Chronic Procrastinator
13 August 2015
By Sheila Stinnett
As the last days of summer are upon us, I would like to discuss a behavior which continually haunts me, is unproductive and generally just makes me feel bad, my urge to procrastinate. When I glanced at my refrigerator this morning, I saw plastered to its front, my ambitious list of...
Heroin Crisis
23 July 2015
By Darcy McConnell
The United States Drug Enforcement Agency figures show a four-fold increase in heroin seizures along the southwest border since 2008: 4,653 pounds of heroin was confiscated in 2013, with the amount of pure heroin more than doubling. The National Drug Threat Assessment Summary reported: “The increase...
The BeEdmond App: Connecting Teens to Support Close to Home
05 July 2015
If you know a teen or a tween, you know that there is only one thing more vital than oxygen, the essential, ever-present, possibly broken screened cell phone. It has become the primary mode of communication and connection with the world at large for the overwhelming majority of kids. If you were still clinging to the hope that we would some...
Family Roles
27 May 2015
By John Goetz, LPC
Families come in all shapes and sizes. They are unique systems that deserve respect and reverence. As systems, families have multiple levels of interactions and dynamics. These interactions and dynamics have long been a rich field for researchers to explore. Some of ...
In The Good Ol’ Summertime
08 May 2015
By Belinda Crosier, LPC, LADC
Oh, those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer! They’re almost here, & with them, come expectations by parents & children about what those days will render...
Teens and Smartphones
23 April 2015
By Quinton Ellis
Hey. Remember that societal conversation we never had about whether kids should be given that exact same technology as their parents simply because they all want it? Well, we really ought to revisit that discussion again for the first time.
The first IPhone was released in June of 2007. I remind you of this in o...
“Prevention is Key: Let’s Start with the Man in The Mirror.”
01 April 2015
By Chad McCoy, M.A.
Just like in any disease or illness: Early Prevention is key. From cancer to depression, the earlier problems are identified, the more adept we can be in treating and addressing these problems. Depression i...
What is the “right” way to parent?
09 March 2015
By Amanda Percival, M.A., LPC Candidate
Parenting can be a controversial topic. What is the “right” way to parent? Haven’t we all been quick to judge another parent at the supermarket or restaurant whose child is not behaving appropriately according to our standards? I know I have, especially before ...
Marijuana Is Still Illegal in OK
11 February 2015
By Darcy McConnell, LADC, LPC
Twenty-three states and the District of Columbia currently have laws legalizing marijuana in some form or another. Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington have legaliz...
Kids and Entitlement
21 January 2015
Teen: “My sadness is infinite and beyond your understanding.”
Parent: “Uhhh…okay.”
Teen: “Also, I need mone...
The Rush to Normalcy
01 January 2015
By Chad McCoy, M.A.
It’s an odd thing, ya know? The first 18 or so years of our lives we do nothing but grow and, hopefully, achieve until the day we graduate high school. Even then many of us spend much more time achieving through college to land that job that we will inevitably spend the rest of ...