Transitioning Times

It’s that time of year again, the end of summer and time for our kids to go back to school.  As parents we are excited for our kids to head back to school, back to learning and sharing the overall experience of another year of school, but for some of us, we feel anxiety and are apprehensive because of what we know our kids may deal with in the new school year.  I am talking about “Bullies” !  Bullies are everywhere, in school, online, and according to most students I talk to, on the school bus.  I call it the “Not-So-Magic” school bus. Too often we hear about accidents involving school transportation vehicles.   According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, from 2003 to 2012, 55 school-age children died in school-transportation related crashes.  A large number of those accidents happened because the drivers were distracted by issues between kids on the bus. The U.S. Department of Education say...

As an advocate working in the field of domestic violence and sexual assault, I talk a lot about power and control. It's funny, when you recognize the dynamics of power and control; you start to see it everywhere. I am glad I am able to recognize it now and point it out to clients, in order to help them recognize the power of it. What is power and control? Here's a little graphic for you. (http://www.lfcc.on.ca/HCT_SWASM_5.html) Simply put, it is someone's need to feel power and control over another person. This can manifest in many different ways and severities. It could be something as simple as changing the time of a person's plans from 5 to 5:15. (Of course, if this happens to you, it doesn't necessarily mean that the person does it to feel power and control over you.) And on the other spectrum, it can manifest in domestic violence and sexual assault. Rape is not about a desire for sex, it's a desire for power and control.  Anyway, th...