This seminar is designed to help meet the needs of newly divorced or separated individuals. Nine informative sessions on topics of utmost importance to the separated or divorced person are presented by helping professionals from different community areas. After each presentation, participants move into small groups with experienced facilitators for further sharing and support. Then, we meet at a local restaurant for informal socializing. One additional session (Week 4) is scheduled during each seminar for sharing in a more personal setting.
Sessions include:
#1 Facing Reality
Sept. 15
“Is this really happening to me?” This session will be a discussion of the emotional states you may be experiencing.
Brian Fuller, PhD, LLP, Child and Family Psychology Services, Portage.
Jan. 26
Rev. Dr. Mark Kraai, has been the Pastor of three churches, was a Faculty Member of New Brunswick Theological Seminary and was one of the founding members of Coping With Divorce.
#2 Letting Go of the Past
Sept. 22, Feb. 2
Participants will be helped to understand some of the psycho-social elements of loss involved in the divorce process.
Cheryl Parente-Roggow, LMSW, ACW, CAAS, Plainwell Counseling Center.
www.plainwellcounselingcenter.com
#3 Principled Negotiation Skills
Sept. 29, Feb. 9
Learn how to communicate with your former spouse, attorney, friends, and family. Emphasis will be on disarming an aggressive spouse.
Thomas Flemming. LPC, private divorce mediator.
www.divorceandfamilymediation.com
#4 Small group meeting at alternative site
Oct. 6, Feb. 16
This week, small groups choose an alternative meeting site; a members home, a restaurant, etc., for sharing in a more personal setting. Bring whatever you would like to share with the group, family pictures, a new hobby or project, or a special interest.
#5 Coping with Loneliness
Oct. 13, Feb. 23
“What do I do when the minutes tick by like hours and the hours like days?” The goal of this session is to find a healthy balance between activity and our alone times.
Judith Dean, LLP, Alpha Testing and Counseling Center of Kalamazoo.
www.alphatcc.com
#6 Assuming Responsibility for Yourself
Oct. 20, Mar. 1
How to overcome anger and blaming games and attain a clearer sense of personal responsibility.
Kelly J. Hamlin, MA Communications, Life Enrichment Consultant.
#7 Children and Parenting Issues in Divorce
Oct. 27, Mar. 8
This session will deal with the special issues for children and parenting skills needed in divorced families.
Daniel Renstrom, LMSW, Clinical Social Worker in private practice in Kalamazoo.
www.counselingpcc.com/renstrom
#8 Growing Through Your Divorce
Nov. 3, Mar. 15
This session will help you find something positive in loneliness and rejection and help you find forgiveness for yourself and even your former spouse.
Pastor Debbie Eisenbise, Skyridge Church of the Bretheren, Kalamazoo.
www.skyridge.org
#9 Pitfalls of Relationships
Nov. 10, Mar. 22
A presentation of some of the most common areas of breakdown in interpersonal relationships and of adjusting to family and friends in light of your new reality.
Ruth Eichler, LMSW, Therapist in private practice.
www.counselingpcc.com/eichler or
www.12-songs.com
#10 Adjusting to Single Living
Nov. 17, Mar. 29
Topics such as friending, dating, enjoying independence, and what to do now, will be discussed.
Sheri Heflin, MA, LLP, NCA, Child and Family Psychology Services, Portage.