by Christine Hammond on March 8, 2019
It wasn’t until counseling that Tim realized he was married to a narcissist. Again. And unfortunately, again. The narcissism in his first wife was obvious. Her obsession with power and control of his life and money alienated her from their kids. His second wife was so preoccupied with her appearance that he lost track of… (more…)
by Christine Hammond on February 22, 2019
At first, Jacqueline found her partner’s behavior endearing. He would send her multiple text messages during the day including during work, he randomly appeared when she was out to lunch with friends, he started texting her friends as if he was their friend, and he constantly wanted to know where she was and who she… (more…)
by Christine Hammond on February 15, 2019
At first, it sounds like a silly question. Not to Julie. She was trying to pin down a new definition after having been in an abusive relationship for eight years. She wanted love. She wanted to be in love and be loved by someone who treated her right. But the years of abuse had conditioned… (more…)
by Christine Hammond on February 7, 2019
Margie was devastated when her mother passed away. Her mom was diagnosed with cancer one month and then gone by the next. She had a close relationship with her mom and frequently leaned on her for support in her marriage, parenting her kids, and balancing family and work. The loss left a huge hole in… (more…)
by Christine Hammond on February 3, 2019
On December 19, 2018, Terry Strawn a decorated Florida Hillsborough County sheriff’s deputy, shot and killed his wife and 6-year-old granddaughter at his home. Then he drove to his daughter’s house, killed her, and called 911, sending the officers to the school where he worked. When the police arrived, he committed suicide in front of… (more…)
by Christine Hammond on February 1, 2019
As Monique recounted the abuse from her childhood, it became apparent that the abuse from her mother was not typical. While most abusers follow a pattern of tension building, incident, reconciliation, and calm, her mom did not. The tension-building phase was constant with no break or relief from the ensuing harm. The incidents came out… (more…)
by Christine Hammond on January 19, 2019
Dave started going to counseling because his marriage was falling apart. He said that his wife had enough of his “lack of presence, no emotional response, and no intimacy.” While he agreed with her analysis, he was unable to describe it for himself and minimized the impact these things played in their marriage. He reasoned… (more…)
by Christine Hammond on January 14, 2019
Morgan had not noticed the book, The Prince, sitting predominately on her bosses’ credenza. Perhaps she hadn’t previously been in the office long enough to look around, but now seeing the book, everything became clear. Her boss had a common saying during meetings, “The end always justifies the means,” and expected everyone to operate on that… (more…)
by Christine Hammond on January 11, 2019
After meeting his new boss for the first time, Donald was impressed. Here was someone who ran his own business, was highly successful, knew nearly everyone in town, had considerable power and had enormous influence. He was charming, decisive, domineering, unfeeling, harsh, and intimidating. At first, Donald admired his boss. But then he had a… (more…)
by Christine Hammond on January 5, 2019
At a family gathering, Susie’s 2-year-old son was happily running around until her mother-in-law pulled out her cane and tripped him. Susie looked on in horror as the grandmother laughed while her son cried from the fall. Then the grandmother yelled at the boy for crying, calling him a crybaby. Susie swept up her son… (more…)