Hi, I'm Jennifer and I'll be your guest speaker for the foreseeable. A bit about myself, I have experience in various romantic situations, happy and sad, short-lived and long-term. I am 29, have never married, no children, but I'm currently single and content. I've had counseling training, traveled and met people from every guise. Mostly, I really enjoy listening to people. There's no better feeling than knowing you've helped someone smile again! I have been engaged once, asked three times, badly heartbroken once but rejected several times and have learned from all sorts of experiences. I have lived in another country for 7 years, am fiercely independent but have had to rely on asking sometimes strangers for help on personal issues. I Have A Three-Pronged Philosophy Firstly, being very honest about a relationship situation may be the quickest way out of indecision, confusion, hurt, or pain. Unfortunately though, sometimes there are things we don't want to hear or admit to ourselves. It's hard not to be biased. Not surprising really, when we're affected by a rollercoaster of emotions! Secondly then, it's helpful to remember that feelings for someone close should be given the importance they deserve - they're central to our lives! Feelings for someone special don't change overnight and bonds formed are important. It's crucial to think of feelings for someone as slow to change, like a ship changing direction. I have some canny tools tucked up my sleeve to help make the wait more bearable while we sort things. Finally, I'd love to help you recognize when you may actually be on to a good thing! Hopefully I can use my own hard-learned lessons to save you some heartache and maybe help and all in the name of romance (move over Cilla!) I really look forward to hearing from you and buying some hats. I have studied counseling, had counseling myself but mostly I have a kind heart and always put myself fully in the other person's shoes. Tact, Truth and Goals There are so many different relationship types that it is difficult to generalize. Usually dealing with the big R's involves a huge dose of telling yourself the truth about what is really going on in a situation, coupled with realizing your feelings are not the truth but very real, and take slow time to change, like a steam liner changing course, but it will eventually happen. So tact, truth and looking towards the future are my 3 key focus points here. My Point Of View It may be VERY different. It's not necessarily the best one. It's just mine. If I can help by making one person happier by making them think about an option they hadn't explored, then I would be happy. I would never give my own example when suggesting an option, their problem is 100% my attention and my situation may not apply directly to theirs. Jennifer |