Individual Counseling Archives | Plano Christian Counseling

It Takes a Village: The ABCs of Support for Single Parents

It Takes a Village: The ABCs of Support for Single Parents

Sarah Harris, Kate Motaung2025-03-21T10:30:48+00:00March 25th, 2025|Family Counseling, Featured, Individual Counseling|

While it may take two to conceive a baby, it often takes a village to raise a child. This African proverb has long been quoted to advise and encourage parents and people around the value of being interdependent. We all need community and viable support systems to do anything meaningful with God and for societal good. This quote’s inherent wisdom reminds us that our children, one of our prized and precious resources, are of such value that we steward them best when we do it together, with shared strengths and support. Heaven’s Help Having help, but also the willingness to receive the help that’s right for us can be transformative. Even in our relationship with God, His Strength becomes most apparent and elevated during our weaknesses. Our needs do not represent an inconvenience for Him, but rather opportunities for Him to Father us. He builds us up not only in our direct relationship with His Holy Spirit but also through the community in which He’s created us to live. As single parents, our journey can get wearisome, but God will send the right people and reveal the right help in the places where we most need it. Life happens to all of us, and sometimes the conditions by which we find ourselves raising children alone can be devastating. We often feel the weight of disillusionment and abandonment, believing that our parenting experience would have been different from our present reality. Some become single parents by choice, and others, by circumstances such as death, divorce, or a partner’s departure. However we arrived, the fact remains that raising a family, whether with or without a co-parent is a tremendous undertaking. In our instinct to cover and protect the children in our care, our own needs often go unattended. We may feel [...]

0

Ways to Help Anxiety in Aging Parents in Plano, Texas

Ways to Help Anxiety in Aging Parents in Plano, Texas

Stephanie Kramer2025-03-21T08:26:06+00:00March 20th, 2025|Aging and Geriatric Issues, Family Counseling, Featured, Individual Counseling, Relationship Issues|

Anxiety can strike anyone and at any stage in life, but it is particularly prevalent in elderly people. Not only do physiological changes play a part in creating anxiety, but loss of social interaction, mobility, and independence can all contribute. As an adult child of aging parents in Plano, Texas, it can be particularly off-putting to see anxiety in aging parents, those once capable and stable caregivers. Plano Christian Counseling offers compassionate support and faith-based guidance to help families navigate these challenges. Ways to Support Aging Parents Dealing with Anxiety Here are a few strategies and tactics to try when your aging parents are dealing with anxiety in Plano, Texas: Talk with their doctor Anxiety in aging parents can be triggered by many factors so it’s important to rule out any medical reasons for the sudden change. It may even be a side-effect of a prescription drug. Be sure to mention the anxiety to their primary care physician and ask for any advice for their specific situation. Find a comfort item A comfort item is any tangible physical thing that brings them comfort. For some, it could be a soft or weighted blanket or stuffed animal. For others, it might be a photograph of a loved one. Experiment with different items that you think could bring them comfort and have an ample supply on hand. Keep their hands busy If your aged parent can use their hands, consider investing in a fidget toy or two. Fidget spinners, squishies, and other hand-held toys can help keep anxious hands busy and give their eyes and minds something to focus on other than what they are worried about. Hug Hugging can reduce blood pressure and bring a sense of peace to both parties. Be sure to gently and lovingly physically touch your [...]

Comments Off

Emotional Neglect in Relationships: Why It Happens and How to Remedy It

Emotional Neglect in Relationships: Why It Happens and How to Remedy It

Tammy Varghese, Kate Motaung2025-03-21T08:03:25+00:00March 14th, 2025|Featured, Individual Counseling, Relationship Issues, Trauma|

The people you are close to play an important role in your life. One of the key predictors of well-being is whether we’re in healthy relationships with others, whether it’s with a spouse, friends, siblings, colleagues, or neighbors. Some relationships will have a deeper and more lasting impact compared to others, but the point is that as relational and social creatures, the health of our relationships is immensely important. If the health of our relationships matters for our well-being, it pays to know why those relationships can go wrong, and how to remedy it. One of the key areas where a relationship can be unhealthy is when emotional neglect is taking place. Emotional Neglect in Relationships Emotional neglect is an unfortunate reality in many relationships. Whether it’s between parents and their children, siblings, or in a romantic relationship, it’s possible for loved ones to experience emotional neglect. Emotional neglect can be understood as a type of abuse. When a person is neglected emotionally, their emotional needs are consistently ignored, dismissed, or disregarded. Plano Christian Counseling can provide support and guidance for individuals experiencing emotional neglect. What adds to the pain of emotional neglect is that the ones who are disregarding or dismissing another’s emotional needs are the same people who carry the responsibility to meet those needs. Partners, caregivers, or parents are responsible to others to meet their needs, and it’s part of what makes the relationship a healthy one. Emotional neglect can take various forms, including minimizing or trivializing the other person’s experiences; being unavailable and unresponsive when called upon; showing little to no interest in the others’ feelings, thoughts, or experiences; not providing reassurance or comfort; ignoring or dismissing the other’s emotions; withholding validation and support; and not acknowledging or apologizing for hurtful or harmful behavior. When [...]

Comments Off

How to Navigate the Complex Waters of Divorce and Children

How to Navigate the Complex Waters of Divorce and Children

Bryan Ferguson, Kate Motaung2025-03-21T08:19:38+00:00March 13th, 2025|Christian Counseling for Children, Christian Counseling For Teens, Family Counseling, Featured, Individual Counseling, Relationship Issues|

Choosing to share the rest of your life with a person has a profound impact on the rest of your life. When a person gets married, they don’t know exactly what will come their way because life can be unpredictable. Ending a marriage is a big decision, and it can be one of the most painful decisions a person makes in their life. This pain is magnified when divorce and children mix. Dealing With Divorce as an Adult Getting divorced is complicated on several levels. This includes the social, legal, and moral dimensions and implications of the decision. When a person gets divorced, there is a lot they work through to get to that point, but beyond divorce lies other questions, feelings, and thoughts that need to be unpacked. Plano Christian Counseling can help individuals navigate these challenges with faith-based support and guidance. Dealing with a divorce in a healthy way requires several things. Take time to heal Marriage joins two people, two lives, together into one. When a man and woman are joined together in marriage, the two become “one flesh”, and they share life. (Genesis 2:24-25, Matthew 19: 4-6) God’s intention is for people to persist in this state of unity. If that unity is broken through a divorce, it is like tearing off a piece of yourself. Your marriage may have been a difficult one, and divorce opened up new vistas, but you should still take the time to heal. Getting a divorce brings an important part of your life to an end. With that is dealing with the absence and loss of a person to whom you had significant emotional and physical ties. Sometimes, what needs to be mourned is the loss of a dream and of the potential your relationship had. That includes the [...]

Comments Off

5 Good Boundaries to Draw With People Who Have Caused Trauma

5 Good Boundaries to Draw With People Who Have Caused Trauma

McCartney Paul, Kate Motaung2025-03-21T09:20:10+00:00March 10th, 2025|Featured, Individual Counseling, Relationship Issues, Trauma|

` One of the most critical aspects of our emotional freedom is to forgive those who have hurt us. This is especially true for people who have suffered trauma or abuse. A person with a traumatic past may need the help of forgiveness to move past it and thrive in their lives. However, just because a person has forgiven someone does not mean they need to give them access to their lives. Good Boundaries to Draw With Causers of Trauma Boundaries help people limit access to interaction with them and what they can know about them. A person who wants to protect themselves from suffering trauma again needs to draw proper boundaries with that person. Here are five good boundaries to draw with people who have caused trauma: Time Boundaries Limit the amount of time you spend with a person. If you see that person regularly, limiting the time you spend talking with that person is essential. A person who has subjected you to trauma and is not repentant may quickly come back to that topic and cause you pain and harm by denying the behavior even existed. This can re-trigger the pain you are trying to get past. Furthermore, a person who has subjected you to trauma wants to know more about you. By spending more time with you, they can learn more details about your life. Draw a reasonable time boundary and limit their time with you or your loved ones. Plano Christian Counseling can help you set healthy boundaries and find healing from past trauma. Space Boundaries Similarly, limit or restrict their ability to get close to you. A person who is close to you in proximity can try to hug you or, even worse, abuse you. To protect yourself, you need to draw a space [...]

Comments Off

Common Questions When Dealing with Grief and the Holidays

Common Questions When Dealing with Grief and the Holidays

Bryan Ferguson, Kate Motaung2025-03-21T09:23:16+00:00March 7th, 2025|Family Counseling, Featured, Grief Counseling, Individual Counseling, Trauma|

The holidays, like grief, are a mixed bag of unpredictable events and the emotions that grow from them. Put dealing with grief and important holidays like Christmas together and you have the recipe for a tumultuous and volatile storm of emotions. Throw in the pressure of expectations, family dynamics, financial obligations, dreary weather, and even more and you have a season that can be anything but merry and bright. If you’re struggling this holiday season, you’re not alone. There are a variety of reasons why people struggle during the Christmas season and grieving a lost loved one is often a trigger. So much of the holidays are built on family and friends and love and tradition and when something interrupts those relational bonds, the loss can be significant. So where do you go from here? Tips for Dealing with Grief During the Holidays Here are some ideas on how to make you feel a little merrier this holiday season, even in the midst of your grief. Be Realistic: Understand that the holidays are tough for everyone, especially those who are missing someone special, so be kind to yourself, as you would be kind to others. Know that your experience will be different in those first few years without your loved one. Plano Christian Counseling offers compassionate support to help you navigate grief and find comfort during the holiday season. It’s impossible to recreate your special moments and duplicate your memories when a key person is missing. Accept this reality as fact and you will have less stress. Instead, focus on moving forward and creating new memorable moments. Keep Expectations In Check: You may be used to an amazing home-cooked dinner and a tree surrounded by gifts from loved ones. That was certainly a nice memory, but it doesn’t have [...]

Comments Off

5 Things Parents Need to Know About Chemical Dependency

5 Things Parents Need to Know About Chemical Dependency

Wade Van Staden2025-03-22T05:34:06+00:00March 6th, 2025|Chemical Dependency, Featured, Individual Counseling|

Nothing can quite prepare you for the devastating shock of finding out that your child has developed a chemical dependency. Every parent can take the precaution of learning to recognize signs of drug use or addiction but actively confronting it can be terrifying. Navigating chemical dependency is a life-altering journey, but there is hope for every family. Five Things Parents Need to Know about Chemical Dependency There are resources for people wishing to learn more about addiction, including from parents who have already journeyed through chemical dependency with their families. Parents and family members should join support groups and seek out medical attention for chemical dependency. However, many parents do not know how to begin when confronting suspected chemical use. Chemical dependency is certainly not the end of the road for any child, but it might be the start of a long and difficult journey for everyone involved. Here are a few things to keep in mind. Chemical dependency is not a moral failing Addiction is a chronic disease. Medically speaking, it is a condition that lasts for more than a year and requires ongoing medical treatment, or else it will severely impact day-to-day activities. When viewed through this lens it is a far deeper issue than moral failure. You have not failed as a parent if your child has become addicted to substances, and they have not failed you by developing chemical dependency. The issue is far deeper and more serious than morals and even values; your child’s life could be at stake if you reduce the issue to simply being about right and wrong. Plano Christian Counseling provides faith-based support and guidance to help families navigate the challenges of addiction with hope and compassion. Playing the blame game is not helpful When it comes to facing substance [...]

Comments Off

How to Cultivate a Positive Body Image In Our Social Media Age

How to Cultivate a Positive Body Image In Our Social Media Age

Sarah Harris, Kate Motaung2025-03-22T05:54:38+00:00February 27th, 2025|Christian Counseling For Teens, Featured, Individual Counseling, Women’s Issues|

Some people are comfortable with who they are, especially when it comes to their bodies. When you gaze at yourself in the mirror, do you like what you see? As winter draws to a close and the summer months set in, do you feel comfortable as you shed those heavy coats and snow boots for t-shirts, shorts, and pool/beach wear? If there’s a camera around, do you feel comfortable and confident to have your picture taken? Our bodies are always with us, and we can have a positive relationship with them or we can have a negative relationship. What shapes our relationship with our bodies, and can it have a negative effect on our overall well-being? Understanding issues about body image is important, particularly when we are constantly bombarded with images that keep us hyperaware and hyper-focused on the bodies of others as well as our own. Definitions The American Psychological Association (APA) describes body image as the mental picture a person forms of their body as a whole, including its physical characteristics and one’s attitudes toward these characteristics. Your body image is how you see your body, how you feel about your body, and the thoughts that come to mind when you’re considering your body. Plano Christian Counseling offers faith-based guidance to help individuals develop a healthy and positive body image. You could also say that your body image is the self-talk that you engage in about your body, a sort of ongoing dialogue with yourself. This complex dialogue can also include other people, as you express your feelings and perceptions about your bodies with other people such as your friends or even a stranger helping you find the right size of an article of clothing. We all have thoughts about our bodies and feelings we associate with [...]

Comments Off

Self-Forgiveness: Learning How to Forgive Yourself and Why It’s Important

Self-Forgiveness: Learning How to Forgive Yourself and Why It’s Important

Ashlynn Barnette, Kate Motaung2025-03-22T06:01:59+00:00February 25th, 2025|Coaching, Featured, Individual Counseling, Personal Development, Spiritual Development|

Ever find it hard to forgive yourself? Or asked how to forgive yourself? You are not alone. Forgiveness itself can be a difficult task. Even the band Chicago devoted a whole song about it Hard To Say I’m Sorry. Self-forgiveness can seem impossible and hopeless but when achieved it produces healing and freedom. The inability to forgive yourself can cause some significant issues. Shame Shame is the reason why forgiving yourself can seem impossible. Behind shame is a negative core belief of “I am bad.” A negative core belief is something that we believe to be true but is not. Walking around with this belief can lead to feelings of insecurity and behaviors that go along with it. Plano Christian Counseling can help you break free from shame, embrace self-forgiveness, and find healing through faith-based support. It can be difficult to recognize when shame is tainting your view, but damaging, nonetheless. Shame says “You don’t deserve forgiveness.” or “You are not worthy of forgiveness.” These thoughts from shame can cause you to feel stuck. Imagine shame as a dark prison cell – dark because shame festers and grows in darkness. Darkness allows for secrecy so others will not learn the lie that shame has told you (“You are bad.”) Shame festers in this darkness by convincing you “Oh if he/she only knew…” which causes you to feel isolated. The prison cell bars are the lies shame tells you that keep you locked in. Walking aimlessly, desperately searching for a way out of pitch-black darkness. So how can you overcome shame and free yourself from the dark prison cell? First, we need some light. Humbly ask the Light of the World, Jesus, into your cell (1 John 1:5). Don’t feel hesitant, because the truth is He already knows. Ask Him [...]

Comments Off

How to Communicate Better in the Workplace: Four Barriers to Effective Communication

How to Communicate Better in the Workplace: Four Barriers to Effective Communication

McCartney Paul, Kate Motaung2025-03-22T06:28:26+00:00February 19th, 2025|Coaching, Featured, Individual Counseling, Professional Development|

If you have ever seen a good communicator in the flow of expressing themselves, it can be both an inspiring and discouraging thing to witness. Some people seem to be able to express themselves naturally and effortlessly, while others have a host of issues to overcome. Plano Christian Counseling can help individuals build confidence and develop effective communication skills through faith-based guidance and support. The encouraging news is that learning to communicate better is entirely possible; the first step is learning about the barriers that block effective communication. How to Communicate Better by Overcoming Assumptions Words are a small part of communication. People communicate with their personalities, their bodies, and even through silence. We take in and respond to large amounts of information daily without fully realizing that we are wordlessly communicating with those around us. For example, when a coworker who is normally chatty and vibrant comes into work and they are quiet, withdrawn, and disheveled in appearance, they are communicating something without even speaking. We might subconsciously take note of their behavior, body language, and appearance and deduce that they are struggling today. They have communicated something to us. How we treat them in response is us communicating back to them. We might be gracious to them, give them space by not engaging in small talk, or we might take the opportunity to ask them how they are. If we were to observe the changes in them and decide on the reasons for those changes, we would be assuming. It might be a correct assumption, but without asking them simple, non-invasive questions, we won’t know for sure what is going on. Assumptions might be correct, but by leaning on assumptions, we risk being incorrect. There remains a barrier between us and the person we’ve assumed about. Correct [...]

Comments Off

Individual Counseling

CONTACT INFO

Plano Christian Counseling

ABOUT US