TESTIMONIALS
We felt comfortable sharing our stories and emotions with you…. We felt you sincerely cared about our relationship and individual emotional wellbeing. I appreciated that you said “Your relationship is my client” in our initial meeting. That helped to seal our selection, as we were focused on healing our marriage.
You offer the right balance of listening and “taking in information” with offering tangible suggestions.
You ask permission or caution that “sometimes you’re not going to like what I have to say,” but you’re willing to address the tough issues that need to be said rather than expect the person to arrive at the conclusion [on his or her own.] Sometimes the toughest things are absorbed once feedback is offered, rather than only through self-reflection.
Flexible schedule. I appreciate that we don’t need to book three weeks out with you, and I never felt like you watched the clock and rushed us out of the office because our time was ‘up.’
I think it was very valuable to our sessions that the focus was on the relationship and not the individual. It created a safe environment that was free of blaming one person.
Rapport. It’s difficult to describe but we felt comfortable sharing our stories and emotions with you.
You genuinely care. We felt you sincerely cared about our relationship and individual emotional wellbeing. I appreciated that you said “Your relationship is my client” in our initial meeting. That helped to seal our selection, as we were focused on healing our marriage.
It’s hard to describe but you offer the right balance of listening and “taking in information” with offering tangible suggestions, for example: B. Brown’s TedTalk on vulnerability, one-page handouts that summarize our discussion (i.e. distorted thinking), suggested chapters and readings that are pointed, on topic and not overwhelming.
We were drawn to a description we saw about you that emphasized communication as well as having experience in an office-corporate setting. We felt that communication was our biggest obstacle and we felt that someone who has experienced day-to-day what we do at our jobs would be able best to relate to us.
I found your ability to take what one person was saying and “translate” it in a way so the other person could see it from a different lens was the most helpful. It allowed both individuals to understand where the other was coming from. Also, I think it was very valuable to our sessions that the focus was on the relationship and not the individual. It created a safe environment that was free of blaming one person.
As someone who has never been to counseling before, Mark created a safe environment that offered solutions and techniques that continue to benefit my relationship with my significant other. He was a lovely unbiased voice of reason and because of him not only has my relationship with my significant other been stressful.
Mark’s style is inviting and supportive. He worked with us through a very difficult time, asked challenging questions, provided resources, readings and suggestions, and our discussion always prompted me to reflect further after our session. He encouraged us to deal with difficult issues that hindered our relationship for years. We’ve grown as individuals and as a couple because of him, and we’re grateful.
I felt like you genuinely wanted to help us and I appreciated your approach and attitude, all of which better enabled communication between all of us. You offered different perspectives and different examples, either from different authors or even your own personal experiences.
Mark saved our marriage and helped us focus on what’s important in relationships.
Mark has been a tremendous help to me both as a Man and as a Husband. As a “Fixer” by nature, it’s been a very tough but rewarding transition for me to be a better listener and supporter of my wife and family without trying to “Fix” what may not be broke. With his assistance, I have become more self-aware of how my actions and reactions have affected my loved ones and this has led me to become a better partner and Father.
We looked online to find potential therapists. When I read your description, I liked that you had past experience working in a corporate setting. I thought it would provide a point of connection and common understanding for all of us.
I like that you pointed out early on that people receive so much training and education in life, but little of that goes towards relationships. You also set aside or challenge societal preconceptions about relationships, gender roles, and typical (or, better put, untrained) methods of addressing relationship problems. Your counseling is genuine, which really came through when you listened to what one person said and helped the other person formulate a response, facilitating dialogue.
Before we met with Mark, I had never visited a counselor before. Now, I think everyone should see a relationship counselor, whether you are having glaring relationship challenges or not! Mark helped us develop relationship skills that strengthened our bond and communication as a couple, but which are also useful for everyday interactions with everyone you meet (friends, family, work.)
You are very good at having people understand that it’s O.K. to be vulnerable. With this vulnerability, self-awareness is a lot easier to actualize. I believe it’s your ability to relate to people via your own experiences.