Hello! I'm on a mission to help parents avoid the pain of disconnection during the teen years. Through my own parenting journey I discovered how focusing on feelings and needs can bring us together in ways that sharing thoughts alone cannot. Inspired and encouraged by a teen I lived with and one whom I met, I wrote and illustrated a simple book for children and young families to introduce the basics of compassionate connecting. I believe the visual symbols can help us remember basic truths... Thoughts come and go, feelings come and go, and deep inside we all have the energy of our needs which connect to everything we feel and everything we do! This is as true for adults as it is for children.
It was the feeling of desperation and my need for support in my parenting that brought me together with Nonviolent Communication in 2013. Since that time I have acquired over 400 hours of NVC training.
I credit this practice with repairing my relationship with my teen daughter and improving my marriage. From the very first workshop I attended, I knew this learning would enhance my life. I offer a free weekly practice group through Capital NVC and dream that these sources of support will multiply in response to the world's need for empathic listening and understanding. My vision is that anyone longing for connection will know that these relational skills exist and that they will have access to learning them just as I did.