Are baby blues hurting your family and spouse? Some of us have spent our entire lives dreaming of what life would be like once we were all grown up. We planned out our weddings, our ideal mates, and our perfect nuclear family with 2.5 children. It is when life does not go exactly according to plan that we begin to panic and loose control of our lives. Childbirth can be one of those hazy moments in life. We plan for months about a new addition to the family, but once we welcome this new little bundle into the world, life doesn’t always become the sunshine-filled dream we expected.

Dr. Sara Rosenquist is a specialist in the field of dealing with postpartum depression in women, and couples. Sara’s book, After The Stork: The Couple’s guide to Preventing and Overcoming Postpartum Depression, deals explicitly with these issues. Sara has a very extensive global background, which has allowed her to communicate easily with others. Over her lifetime Sara has lived in Tunisia, Argentina, Uruguay, Thailand, and El Salvador before coming back to the United States to study at Duke University, where she received her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology. To find out more about Dr. Sara Rosenquist you can visit her website or call 919-872-4648 for an appointment. Sara’s book, After The Stork: The Couple’s guide to Preventing and Overcoming Postpartum Depression, is available on Amazon.com.

Is constant interference from your in-laws killing your marriage? We’ve all seen a football game where everything went from fantastic to devastating in mere minutes. It looks like a clear win; your team is ahead, defeating all obstacles in their path. Then BOOM, out of nowhere interference by the other team turns the game around entirely. What was once an easy game turns messy and complicated very quickly. A good relationship can overcome a lot of obstacles that the world throws at it, but constant interference from an outside source can create larger rifts that are hard to overcome.

Dr. Nicole Imbraguglio is Clinical Director at Lepage Associates in Durham, NC where she provides counseling and evaluation services to individuals of all ages. She is experienced in individual, couples, and group therapy and specializes in couples issues. She holds her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology with a minor in Interpersonal Dynamics, as well as a Master’s degree in Community and Clinical Psychology. To find out more about Dr. Nicole Imbraguglio you can visit the Lepage Associates website or call 919-572-0000 for an appointment.

Is your friendship with your child hurting your marriage? Only a few shorts years ago, or so it seems, we were all children ourselves; laughing and playing with our friends, disobeying our parents, and tormenting the family pet. Before we knew it we were adults who were getting married and having children of our own. When time seems to fly and get away from us, we often forget that we, ourselves, are not children anymore. This can be especially hard when dealing with our own children and a parent’s natural desire for acceptance and love. Sometimes it may seem that the easiest path is to be a friend, rather than a parent but these actions could be harming your marriage.

To give us more insight into the situation we have Dr. Laura Green of Wynns Family Psychology in Cary, NC.  Dr. Greene specializes in child and family therapy and child evaluations. Before joining Wynns Family Psychology, Dr. Greene received her Bachelor’s degree from The College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA and her Master’s and Doctorate degrees in Psychology from Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ. She has worked in a variety of settings, ranging from outpatient mental health centers to school systems. To find out more about Dr. Laura Greene you can visit the Wynns Family Psychology website or call 919-467-7777 for an appointment.

Are you the outcast in your stepfamily? Dating and marriage is a process that is complicated enough on it’s own, never mind coming into a family that has already been established. Marrying someone with children from a previous relationship can be a delicate mind field that requires a certain finesse to master.

Certified Master Stepfamily Coach, Claudette Chenevert, found herself in a similar situation over twenty years ago when she, a single mom to a 6 year old boy, married her husband. She became a stepmom to two girls. After several years worth of failures and successes Claudette was able to determine what steps needed to be taken to successfully integrate oneself into an established family and make it function on its own. From the constant presence of an ex to taking on a parenting role over night, Claudette knows how to handle it all. To find out more about Claudette or her approach, you can visit her Stepmom Coach website.

Do your days seem to always be filled with obligations and responsibilities to others? Chores to do, errands to run, children to chauffeur? With all the havoc of a modern world it is hard to make time for oneself, let alone their spouse. This hectic lifestyle is often what leaves a couple’s relationship in a state of lackluster. The flirtation, fun, and magic all seem to have fallen to the wayside. Luckily there is an easy and quick way to restore flirtation and fun back into  any relationship.

Monica Stroebel joins us and reveals secretes from her new book The Compliment Quotient. Monica shares simple ways to introduce excitement and  flirtation back into a stale relationship with one simple technique. Monica’s book is now available through Amazon, as well as Barnes & Noble. To learn more about Monica or her book, The Compliment Quotient, visit Monica’s website at complimentquotient.com.

With Mother’s Day just around the corner, we’re all reminded just how important it is to show appreciation for the mothers in our lives. But sometimes we can forget that It’s just as important to show appreciation and support for your wife’s role as a mother throughout the rest of the year. What are some of the issues mothers deal with on a daily basis that sometimes go unnoticed, and what can husbands do to show their appreciation?

Dr. Kristen Wynns returns to discuss common complaints from mothers who feel unappreciated and what you can do to support your wife and show her how much you value what she does for your family.

Dr. Wynns has a private practice in Cary, NC and specializes in therapy for children, adolescents, and families. You can find out more about Dr. Wynns practice and services at her website, WynnsFamilyPsychology.com, or by calling her office at 919.805.0182. Kristen also has a blog called Marriage and Parenting 101 with great advice for parents.