By Daniel Scrafford
PACT Level 3 Therapist
In my early professional years, I was asking the question: How can I treat, or cure, or change this person? Now I would phrase the question in this way: How can I provide a relationship which this person may use for his own personal growth?
— Carl R. Roger...
Dear PACT Community,
Happy 2024! As we enter the new year, I’m excited to take this opportunity to look back and reflect on what the PACT Institute has accomplished and to let you know about this year’s plans for continuous growth and improvement – ours and yours!
Looking Back: We’ve Learned and G...
By Angela Aiello, Ph.D. LMFT
PACT Level 2 Therapist
It’s cliché, but it was really turning into the vacation from hell:
“Oh, for f***’s sake, you’re not maneuvering in the right direction.”
“Me? It’s you! You’re the one who steered us into the muck! Try to move the oars like this!”
“I’m trying, but y...
William Ryan, PhD
PACT Level 3 Therapist
Sarah and Dylan have been married sixteen years and have two children together. Over the last four years, Sarah has been increasingly dissatisfied in the marriage. She has repeatedly asked Dylan to do couple therapy with her. Dylan consistently responded by r...
This month, we’re celebrating a new cohort to have earned the distinct title of PACT Certified Therapist. These therapists completed the highest level of PACT training this year, and you may see them teaching classes, offering consultation, or sharing PACT research projects.
We asked them why they ...
Ah, the holiday season — a time of celebration, togetherness, and making cherished memories with loved ones. AND a time filled with unique challenges, sometimes unrealistic expectations, and potential stressors that can strain even secure-functioning relationships.
From Thanksgiving to New Year’s D...
As PACT founder Stan Tatkin says, “A daily gratitude practice is a happiness practice.”
And the cultivation of gratitude in your own life can serve as a potent tool to enhance your clients' emotional well-being — and your own.
More than just a platitude, gratitude has the transformative ability to rew...
By Stan Tatkin, PsyD, MFT
PACT Founder
The topic of your disagreement is not as important as how you handle the disagreement. Most issues boil down to errors in memory, perception, and communication. You can solve many of these mistakes by doing the following:
1. Make eye contact. If you are able t...
In place of a blog article this month, we’re sharing a question that a PACT community member posted in the Google Group recently, along with several responses. Both the question and the responses were thoughtful and authentic, and we wanted our larger PACT community to have the benefit of reading th...
By Ed Coambs, MBA, MA, MS, CFP®, LMFT, CFT-I™
PACT Level 2 Therapist
Why is couples therapy important for the two of you?
For me, it comes from seeing and experiencing the relational, psychological, and physical pain that comes up around money and relationships.Â
Early in my marriage, money became...
By Doris Montalvo Moll
Clinical Psychologist
PACT Level 3 Therapist
Purpose
This work stems from a concern of mine, an initially unarticulated feeling that I have had for some time. This feeling arose during both clinical and nonclinical situations in which I heard statements, such as "I am too depe...
By Krista Jordan, PhD
PACT Certified Candidate
PACT therapy is a highly dynamic form of couples therapy developed by Stan Tatkin, PsyD, MFT. What distinguishes PACT therapy from all other forms of couples therapy to date is the integration of one of the newest areas of psychology and psychiatry — in...
