Posted on 9th February, 2023 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

Relationships are hard, there’s no doubt about it. Many people find themselves asking, “how do I know if a relationship is right for me?” Most adults have been through at least one relationship in their […]

Posted on 6th December, 2022 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

If your partner is causing conflict and strain in your relationship, it might seem as if they need therapy to fix whatever’s going on for them so you can have the relationship you’re hoping for […]

Posted on 24th October, 2022 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

In a recent post we opened up the topic of divorce and what some of the reasons might be to consider it. In this post we’ll consider what the consequences of divorce could be. As […]

Posted on 1st August, 2022 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

Substance abuse is a major behavioral and mental health challenge for any person to face. And there is a whole separate set of challenges that their spouse or partner faces. People struggling with addiction need […]

Posted on 7th March, 2022 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

Let’s take a look at the options in front of you for helping your depressed partner. Please remember, though, that you are not responsible for your partner’s mental illness, and you cannot make it go away. The best you can do is try to help. If things don’t get better, it’s not your fault. Like anything else in life, all you can do is try your best; you cannot make their problem go away by force of will, by nice gestures, or anything else.

Posted on 5th October, 2021 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

When I bought my house, the previous owner had left behind a motley assortment of old household items – boxes of ancient textbooks, fireplace utensils, a poker table, and a 6-foot tall cast-iron fluoroscopy machine […]

Posted on 7th June, 2021 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

Divorce stinks. Even when it’s the best option, it’s still a bad option. And this is doubly so when there are kids involved. (Actually, that’s probably an understatement. A divorce with no children is painful; […]

Posted on 2nd September, 2020 By Amalia Philips

Our everyday way of living as we know it is disappearing. We are distracted and thus lose connection to others as well as to our own heart. Most of us were taught that busyness and […]

Posted on 26th March, 2020 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

These are definitely challenging times. COVID-19 has us cooped up in a serious way, and many of us are dealing with any number of other problems, including employment, schooling, and possibly health. Your marriage is […]

Posted on 2nd March, 2020 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

If you’re really old school, you may be thinking that the title of this post refers to the quaint, genuine, and meaningful “I love you.” If you’re a little more modern, perhaps you’ve heard that […]

Posted on 9th August, 2018 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

It is generally accepted in today’s generation of parents that praise and encouragement are the tools of choice in childrearing rather than some past methods such as yelling, shaming, and, of course, whupping. Praise and […]

Posted on 25th June, 2018 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

The end of a relationship is never easy, especially if you’ve been together for years.  This is true even if you know the relationship was going sour, or was unhealthy to begin with. The truth […]

Posted on 10th April, 2017 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

We’re taking a break from our regularly scheduled posts on the Five Love Languages to bring you this exclusive special in which I was invited to a local TV station to do a short bit […]

Posted on 24th January, 2017 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

Words of Affirmation is the first of the love languages described in Gary Chapman’s Five Love Languages system. For people whose primary love language is Words of Affirmation, it’s what you say that counts.  This […]

Posted on 16th June, 2016 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

Bariatric surgery and self-esteem are obviously intricately intertwined with each other. Most people who suffer from obesity naturally struggle with their self-esteem, especially in a culture such as ours where beauty and thinness have been […]

Posted on 12th May, 2016 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

Parents-in-law have been known to cause grief in many a marriage, but they can also be of tremendous help to it.  In this article I touch on just a few important notes for how parents […]

Posted on 31st March, 2016 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

It is not uncommon for us to field calls from people looking to get help for someone other than themselves. One common category of such callers is the family member of someone with borderline personality […]

Posted on 21st March, 2016 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

So what’s the connection between bariatric surgery and therapy? If you’ve gotten the operation done or are considering it, you are probably aware that you have to do a psychological evaluation before going through with […]

Posted on 14th March, 2016 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

Every now and then I hear about a “great new therapy” that promises fast results and lasting change (often after a single session or treatment). I am highly skeptical of such approaches and I encourage […]

Posted on 1st June, 2015 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

I recently chanced across an article by Andrea Nair and was so appreciative of it that I looked her up and ended up finding dozens more really helpful articles.  I agree with almost everything she […]

Posted on 29th March, 2015 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

Here’s a helpful, if not entirely novel, article published by Scientific American on bettering one’s marriage.  I guess there’s a science to it after all! http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-to-be-a-better-spouse/ Learn more about our online and in-person marriage counseling […]

Posted on 8th October, 2014 By Raffi Bilek, LCSW-C

I thought this article about supporting the people in your life was excellently presented. http://www.aish.com/sp/so/99754929.html Learn more about our counseling and therapy services here.