With Your Family in Mind

Have you ever noticed that when you keep things bottled up inside you feel more stressed, less productive, more anxious and depressed?  Have you also noticed that when you talk about those things with someone it feels like a load has been lifted off your shoulders?

It is important to understand that quitting is actually a sign of success.  Quitting is a sign that you are actually doing something.  How do I know?  Because in order to quit something, you have to have something to quit.  People who aren’t doing anything, what are they going to quit — the couch?  The very fact that you have something to quit means that you are doing something. 

Are you happy in your relationships with others?  Do you value your work?  What parts of your life aren’t perfect yet?  More importantly, how much do you care?  Enough to get healthy?  Learn to communicate more effectively?  Better yourself?  By allowing poor habits to continue, we keep ourselves from happiness and success, and can damage our relationships without meaning to.  Change is a matter of choice.  Doing nothing is also a decision.  So ask yourself…where do you want to be five years from now?

June 21 is Father’s Day.  Stork Vision has the perfect gift for the dad to be – A 3D/4D ultrasound session is such a tangible bonding experience.
It is such an emotional experience for dad to get to see his unborn child in live motion.  Just imaging the look on his face when he realizes that his baby bears his likeness.

The brain is a complicated biological processing machine.  Weighing about three pounds, it is capable of the most amazing things – language, emotions, dreams, and plans.  Our understanding of the world around us is filtered through our senses and interpreted by our brains.  And although each human brain is similarly organized, there are often major differences in the way each individual brain uses information to solve problems. 

On Wednesday, April 29, thirty-two local youth from various Santa Clarita Valley Junior and Senior High Schools were honored at the Hero of the Week Recognition ceremony hosted by the City of Santa Clarita’s Anti-Gang Task Force.  Youth were recognized for displaying leadership qualities, having the strength to overcome obstacles and showing perseverance in their lives.  The event was held at the Santa Clarita Activities Center and over 100 people attended.

Respite refers to short-term, temporary care to allow caregivers and family members a break from their daily routines.  It can also be used for those individuals who require short-term assistance while recovering from an illness or accident.

Doctor, I’ve tried everything!
“Doctor, I’ve tried everything for my headache and nothing has helped.  I’ve had still x-rays, EEG’s, brain scans and CAT scans.  I’ve been to two neurologists, and to a neurosurgeon.  I’ve had my eyes tested and glasses checked.  I’ve been to a dentist to check my teeth and an ENT specialist to have my sinuses examined.  Nobody has found a thing wrong with me.  I keep getting these excruciating headaches.  I’ve tried tranquilizers, Valium, codeine, and anti-depressants.  Many times I’ve had to go to the emergency room for a shot of Demerol.  I’m beginning to think it’s futile to try anything.”

Here’s the latest question from a Magazine of Santa Clarita reader about the voiceover business:
Q:  I’ve been thinking about getting into voiceovers, and was wondering what it takes to get into the areas of animation or audiobooks.  Do you think someone without any training could break into that part of the industry?  —Marlene W., Saugus, CA

If your child is mentally disabled, has a substance abuse problem, or is just plain irresponsible, you may be thinking about how to protect your child from himself or herself and how to set up your estate to minimize the risk that your whole legacy will fly out the window.

Lately, I’ve been approached by a lot of people who have never been in therapy before.  Many are under the misguided impression that therapists are somehow exempt from the same day-to-day challenges, disappointments, screw-ups, and set-backs that plague mere mortals.  Truth be told, when I feel the anguish and humiliation of falling face first into an all-too-familiar puddle, I hear myself saying the same thing, “Debbie, you’re a therapist, you should know better.”

There are many ways to form a family.  Many people are discovering adoption as a wonderful way to expand their families and help children in need at the same time.  However, there are different types of adoptions and it is best to know your options before making this very important decision. 

In today’s economically challenging times, the last thing you need is a costly divorce to add further financial stress to your plate.  A Family Law case is similar to any other legal case, with two ways to resolve: reach an agreement or go to court.  Fortunately, family law somewhat differs from other legal suits, in that court would much rather adopt resolutions than hear days of trial.

After years of anticipation, Golden Valley and West Ranch high schools can finally look forward to the day when they will be able to take advantage of their new state-of-the-art performing arts centers.

Memorial Day is a time when we honor those who served on behalf of our nation’s Armed Forces.  Many of the veterans we think of during Memorial Day are those who served in World War II, coined The Greatest Generation by Tom Brokaw’s book of the same name.

Because May is Better Speech and Hearing Month, I want to bring awareness to this invaluable service.  Who benefits from speech therapy?  In one of my first college courses in speech pathology, the professor asked, “What is a speech problem?”  He then answered the question himself, saying “anything is a problem if it is a problem for you.”

Preserving a photo album or photographs is one novel method of having an essence of freshness in your mind. Every time a picture album is seen, values and feelings associated with memories are brought in front as snapshots in our minds. Pictures do utter more than any word could express. Going a step ahead and painting complete stories by developing picture albums into scrapbooks would make your recollections still better.

When representing a defendant at a jury trial, I always emphasize the fact that the keys to the courthouse steps are free.  This means that anyone can sue for any reason.  And, just because you sue somebody does not mean that your claim has any merit.