Growing up Through the Life Cycle

In this episode, Jenny addresses the following scenario: A pastor has befriended a new church member and finds that after a very positive connection full of compliments, the relationship has become increasingly critical, with negative gossip about him spreading around church members.  Jenny discusses the nature of fast-tracking of togetherness in a relationship. What pacing of a new relationship prevents […]

This scenario involves an adult daughter, her mother and her husband and father.   She writes: “Another issue that keeps coming up is when I got married and moved out of home. We would visit once a week but to her it wasn’t enough. She wanted us to move in with her and my dad. […]

In this episode, Jenny addresses the following question: “How do I deal with my distant adult brother, who cuts off from our family at the first hint of any tension?” Jenny notes how helpful it is to see the perspective over time– that is the backdrop of the current challenge. This family has a history […]

In this episode, Jenny addresses the following question: Can you possibly address how efforts at Growing Yourself Up are the same or different when facing a narcissistic individual? In my case, my own mother. Many sources I’ve read on narcissism suggest that often the best course of action is “no contact” (which is obviously in […]

A conscientious parent can sometimes find themselves over focussing on one or more of their children. The appropriate level of connection and supervision can gradually increase to a worry driven response to a child – especially a child that we are more sensitive to. At this time of lockdown and school closure, this pattern can […]

Couples finding an even balance between connection and space to be individuals is central for the health of their relationship. How do you work on this balance when spending so much time together in Covid-19 lockdown? It’s easy to experience varying degrees of suffocation in a relationship and to use emotional distancing to manage this. […]

Having an external drama to be absorbed in can become a detour from experiencing and addressing other more generalised tensions and issues in our lives. The anxiety sponge of the current crisis is so easily fed by an intense repetitive news cycle and amplified by social media posts. We can superficially feel better and experience […]

Many people have aspired to set and achieve new goals at this time of dramatic change. A couple of months into lockdown has left many of us drained of energy that has been absorbed by having to adapt to change and by the drain of our reacting to family members in lockdown. Goal setting may […]

It is challenging to stay meaningfully connected to the extended family during Covid-19 isolation. Some families are struggling to manage the extra demands of their households so they are likely to put extended family interactions on hold so as not to add to the pressure.  There are, however, costs to reducing these connections. In this […]

How does a parent best support the child’s learning from home? How can they manage the pulls to take over the school’s role in delivering lessons? Or the pull to correct and coerce a child to perform better? This podcast helps parents to consider what they are responsible for and what is not their responsibility […]