Posted by AmySanderMontanez at 9/12/2011 11:18 AM | Add Comment My daughter evacuated NYC Friday evening, along with several million others.  She had received a phone call earlier in the day from a friend’s mother.  “ Sweetie, this is your Mama Shirley.  Now I want you to get on a train and come up here…

Posted by AmySanderMontanez at 8/30/2011 1:30 PM | Add Comment August 16th, 2011 “Tell me about this family.” This is often the opening line in a family therapy session.  I learned it from the masters in the field. “Tell me about this family.” What usually follows is someone starts talking about someone else, usually the…

Posted by AmySanderMontanez at 8/16/2011 2:17 PM | Add Comment August 8, 2011 It will come as no surprise to readers that stress and stress related problems are on the rise.  A stress related problem may present itself as anxiety, depression, malaise, anger, outbursts, heart palpitations, forgetfulness, high blood pressure, impulsive behaviors, sleep problems…well…you get…

Posted by AmySanderMontanez at 8/8/2011 3:24 PM | View Comments (1) | Add Comment July 26, 2011 Every other year, for thirty years now, my extended family (parents, siblings, spouses, significant others, and children) have gathered for a week at the beach.  I haven’t kept an accurate account, but I think this was our fifteenth…

Posted by AmySanderMontanez at 7/26/2011 9:01 AM | Add Comment July 5, 2011 Dependence, Independence, Interdependence I spent some time yesterday thinking about the many men and women who, throughout the history of the United States, have worked in various ways to assure our independence and freedom.  Mostly I thought about my relatives and close…

June 27, 2011 A client shared an article with me a few weeks ago that reminded readers to pay attention to little signs that could mean something is wrong with your health.  I’ve read articles like this before.  Mostly we know these things, and this kind of reminder keeps us sufficiently anxious and hyper-vigilant.  We…

Posted by AmySanderMontanez at 6/27/2011 3:59 PM | View Comments (1) | Add Comment If you read last week’s blog, you know that it focused on the stages of community development as authored by M. Scott Peck in his book A Different Drum: Community Making and Peace. Now that you know the stages of community…

Posted by AmySanderMontanez at 6/21/2011 3:04 PM | Add Comment June 13, 2011 Two weeks ago I promised to get back to the idea of belonging to community.  People ask me frequently about the risks and rewards of community, and I think the best way to address this is to write first about stages of…

Posted by AmySanderMontanez at 6/13/2011 4:54 PM | Add Comment Master family therapist, Maurizio Andolfi, M.D., was the main speaker at the three-day SC Marriage and Family Therapy conference in Charleston, SC this past weekend. He was working live with a single mother and her twin children, trying to empower the mother to take control…

Posted by AmySanderMontanez at 6/6/2011 10:11 AM | Add Comment May 25, 2011 I recently had the privilege of attending a Cirque du Soleil performance.  I’ve heard for years how amazing these performers are, how the choreography and sheer artistry as well as the feats of bravery and athletic skill are something one never forgets. …