Nanny to Mommy

Do you feel like something is lacking in your family? Maybe you have grown apart, are struggling with communication, or are not as tight knit as you used to be. If you want to grow back together, here are a few tips:

First up: spend quality time together. Spending quality time together as a family rules above everything else because without spending time together, you won’t truly know one another, and that is so very important. The fast pace of modern-day family life can make it easy to forget that simply just spending time with our children is really important. Our time is one of the greatest things we can give them. Spending time with family builds confidence for all of its members. Parents can teach children to build self-esteem through specific skills such as problem solving and communication. They can also model the ability to love oneself without degrading others. Most importantly, family time means you can just have fun and enjoy each other's company! There are so many fun things that you could do together, but we will get to that in a bit!

Communication is important for strong family relationships. However, if you don't truly listen to others, it can be difficult to communicate. Working on your listening skills can help you communicate better and form stronger bonds. Make sure to listen actively. Show that you're listening with non-verbal cues and ask clarifying questions. When it's your turn to talk, acknowledge what the speaker has said by reflecting and commenting on it. Avoid negative habits, like interrupting, to help conversations run smoothly. A lot of the time, strong emotions come when listening to family members, and listening is definitely difficult when strong emotions are present. Often, we feel the urge to say something or don’t know what to say when a family member is dealing with strong emotions. Try to hold back. Just being with the person, even when that person is not quite ready to share, is a good first step to take. Sometimes they will come back later to tell us more about the issue. A gentle touch or hug can show support when we don’t know what to say.

If you are struggling to listen to another person in your family, counseling might be the answer for you. Restorative Counseling Services can help, if you are in Atlanta. They can help with Atlanta Couples Therapy, OCD, grief, ADHD, couples therapy, family therapy, and so much more. They say, “At Restorative Counseling Services, our philosophy is simple:

Individuals, couples, and families thrive when they experience excellent therapeutic care in a warm and safe environment.

We use evidence-based techniques to engage clients in talk therapy, allowing them to gain a deeper understanding of who they really are, where they came from, and where they want to go. In addition to helping clients gain clarity and understanding, we are incredibly passionate about providing clients with practical, real-life tools to take their newfound insight and create change in their lives immediately. It is this two-pronged approach of process work and skills development that helps our clients not only get better faster but start living more meaningful and satisfying lives today.”

Counseling can be so beneficial for individuals, couples, families, and everyone in between. It definitely increases communication and contributes to keeping a tight-knit family if you are struggling with communication, or other issues like learning more about OCD and impulse control.

Last but not least, support each other. Work every single day towards supporting each other and have fun with it. Listen, and truly know what each person in your family wants and needs. Always support one another to the best of your ability and it will make such a difference with your family dynamic and keeping a tight-knit unit.