Candida Abrahamson, Ph.D.

As a coach, mediator, and counselor since acquiring my Ph.D. from Northwestern University in 1984, I have been helping adults and adolescents through the particular struggles of our time: tension between couples, parenting frustration, blending new families, separation and divorce, (un)employment, cancer, and loss. Many individuals coming from abusive relationships reassert self-control and regain self-esteem.

My voice of reason and moderation guides people in shifting from fear and hopelessness to problem-solving and respect. When relationships, whether personal or professional, come to an impasse, mediation techniques help to ensure that each party will have his/her needs heard and accounted for in a dignified way. In addition to talking, listening, and reframing, I employ metaphor, active teaching, role-playing, visualization, and occasionally hypnotherapy. My clients seek these services in my office as well as by telephone, allowing a national and even international reach.

• Couples counseling
• Parenting training
• Family reconciliation
• Step-families

• Expressing anger without hostility
• Hearing the thoughts and feelings of others
• Criticizing without crushing
• Connecting current emotional stalemates to past suffering
• Being equally honest about strengths and weaknesses

• Divorce mediation
• Family mediation
• Small business mediation
• Dispute resolution

• Reducing anxiety through stress management and visualization
• Easing adjustment to transitions
• (college, marriage, children)
• Job searching, resume writing, and career coaching
• Eating and exercise planning

• Anxiety and phobia control
• Smoking cessation
• Weight reduction
• Performance enhancement
• (academics, athletics, sexuality)

• Coping with catastrophic illness or disability
• Saying goodbye to dying friends and family
• Adjusting to serious financial reversals through death or divorce
• Processing disappointments, lost dreams, and expectations

• Reducing anxiety through talking and information gathering
• Supporting the worried family
• Problem solving for everyday activities
• Managing overwhelming news and lifestyle changes
• Alternative healing through visualization