Month: January 2012

Many fathers today see themselves as an integral part of family life no longer content to put all their energy and love into their careers. Increasingly, fathers are taking time to play, cuddle, talk and teach their children.

Unlike the past, where fathers were more inclined to be distant, fathers today are seeking to share parenting responsibility, strive for a better balance between work and home and to be there to encourage, support and believe in their children.

Fathers bring different things to parenting, things that are unique and irreplaceable in the way they show consistency, firmness, warmth and involvement.

There are a number of things that children like to do with Dads

• Accompany Dad on adventures and experiences in the big wide world
• Hear stories about Dad’s life and see what they are doing for a living
• Learn to make and fix things together
• Play and cuddle

Separation and divorce can often be a huge blow to a father’s hopes and dreams for his children. If you are in this situation it is important to remember that you divorce your partner not your children.

Relationships Australia can assist former partners through mediation to work out an ongoing parenting plan. This will ensure that fathers still stay connected to their children and the children benefit from being loved and cared for by both parents.

Relationships Australia can be contacted on 1300 364 277.

One of the things I enjoy most about my job is trying to understand human behaviour. We humans are so fascinating. Even though we are all of the same species (homosapians), we all act differently. These differences in behaviour has much to do with how our mind interprets events. The mind is the strongest yet often the most overlooked organ, which influences and alters our behaviour.

However, not all of the thoughts we have, leads to helpful outcomes. Sometimes we can develop unhealthy or unhelpful thinking patterns and this can lead to all sorts of difficulties, such as depression, anxiety, stress, anger issues etc. What can happen over time is, we can become stuck in this style of thinking and even though we do not like the consequences, the thoughts happen automatically. It is a bit like when we first start learning how to drive a manual car. Initially, we have to think a lot about the clutch, gears, etc, but over time we become so use to driving we may not even notice when we change gears, our thoughts become automatic.

Even though our thoughts may become automatic, one of the advantages of being human is that we can learn and re-learn. Though we may think in a particular way, it does not mean we need to continue. If I use the example of the car again, when we hop into a manual car that we have not driven before, we become more aware of how we are using the gears, clutch etc.

One way, which counsellors may help you, is by breaking down how you think about events and becoming more aware of how you interpret events. Furthermore, you can learn how to challenge some of your unhelpful thoughts, which can lead to alternative outcomes rather than adversity.

At Relationships Australia, we can assist you in ways to catch and challenge unhelpful thinking and if you are in a drought declared area and affected by the drought, a fisherperson affected by the change in fishery laws or a sugar worker affected by changes to the industry our counselling services are free. Call 1300 364 277 to find your nearest Relationships Australia branch.

This article was written and supplied by Relationships Australia Queensland. Any reproduction of this article is prohibited unless agreed upon by Relationships Australia Queensland.