Advice & Guidance
Parents can have a Vital Role in Supporting their Children’s Mental Health
TV, newspapers and social media posts constantly highlight the current mental health crisis amongst young people. Every day we read distressing stories about young people self-harming or ending their life because of harassment and bullying. It can be overwhelming for parents as they try to help their children navigate a different world than they themselves…
Read MoreHow can I support my child going to counselling?
If your child has is having counselling, it can cause difficult feelings for you, and you may not know how to approach the subject or know what to say during this time. This guide has been written to help parents navigate this time and has been written with input from young people. Children and Young…
Read More5 Questions to ask before choosing a Relationship Counsellor
Are they trained to work with relationships? Entrusting yourself and your relationship to relationship counselling can seem daunting especially when there are so many different forms of counselling available. The first thing you need to ask a counsellor is about their training in relationship work. Relationships Scotland runs fully accredited and validated courses for those…
Read MoreHow separated parents can survive Christmas
Christmas should be a magical time of year for families, a chance to come together, open presents and have fun. For families who have gone through the turmoil of a divorce it can mean heightened emotions and stress as they try to do what’s best for their children despite their separation. What starts out as…
Read MoreHow to make sure your relationship survives the Christmas period
Whether you have kids or not, Christmas should be a magical time of year. It’s a chance to come together, open presents and have fun. For many couples the high expectations, societal pressures and busy calendar mean the festive period is a pressure cooker waiting to explode. Add in the fact that alcohol flows more…
Read MoreThe Ten Best Winter Family Days Out in Scotland
Creative Commons Image courtesy of ‘Rich B-S’ via Flickr In Scotland we are so lucky to be surrounded by beautiful scenery and wonderful parks. With this in mind we decided to compile the top ten outdoor family days out. These are the places that we trek to for our favourite picnic spot or the beautiful…
Read MoreMark Stalker: Recently Separated with Kids? What Next?
Continuing our series of blogs for Child Contact Centre Awareness Week (22-26 April), Mark Stalker tackles the difficult subject of managing recent separation. If you’ve recently separated from your partner and have children then you don’t need me to tell you how stressful the whole situation can be. It’s a time which can be really…
Read MoreHow to avoid a Christmas crime scene
The idea of an extended family get-together can be absolutely the best thing about Christmas for many people, but for some, we have to acknowledge, it can be the most stressful. Even in intact families problems can arise if in-laws don’t get along: I’m lucky with my own in-laws so I asked a counsellor colleague,…
Read More10 Christmas survival tips for couples
Gill O’Connell of Relationship Counselling Highland offers some sound advice on getting through the festive season. The story goes: Christmas is about joy, harmony and love. The reality is, though, that it is hard for even the most relaxed people to get through to Boxing Day without some crisis in their family or relationship. When there…
Read MoreJangle bells?
This December, several thousand families across Scotland will be facing their first Christmas separated or divorced. It is hard for even the most relaxed family to get through to Boxing Day without some crisis, tantrum or disaster, but when there is the added pressure of a family living apart because of separation or divorce, the…
Read More