by Rhett Smith | Mar 2, 2016 | Marriage, Podcast, Restoration Therapy
I have told this story countless times in person, on the podcast, and in my blog…so I will try and keep it brief. But about 6 years ago I had an experience that forever changed my life. I had just returned from sitting in on and observing a marriage intensive at...
by Rhett Smith | Feb 24, 2016 | Marriage, Podcast, Restoration Therapy
This last weekend I had one of the greatest experiences I have ever had…and that was being able to co-lead a marriage workshop with my wife Heather. Over the last 10 years I have had the opportunity to lead a lot of marriage retreats, conferences, workshops,...
by Rhett Smith | Dec 3, 2015 | Marriage, Podcast, Restoration Therapy
This last week I have spent some time talking to you about the Pain Cycle and Peace Cycle in Terry Hargrave’s Restoration Therapy model. I love the Pain and Peace Cycle because it has transformed my life. It’s transformed me as an individual, as well as my...
by Rhett Smith | Dec 2, 2015 | Marriage, Podcast, Restoration Therapy
As I have mentioned in the previous podcast blog posts, I am spending time talking about the Pain and Peace Cycle, and the 4 steps to practice it in your life. These tools are found in the work of Marriage and Family therapist pioneer Terry Hargrave and his...
by Rhett Smith | Dec 2, 2015 | Marriage, Podcast, Restoration Therapy
This week I am spending time talking about the Pain and Peace Cycle found in the work of Terry Hargrave and his Restoration Therapy model. As I talk about previous episodes, the Pain Cycle and the Peace Cycle have transformed my life, marriage, relationships,...
by Rhett Smith | Dec 1, 2015 | Marriage, Podcast, Restoration Therapy
In the previous podcast episode I talked about just how life transforming the Pain and Peace Cycle work have been to my life both personally and relationally. Ever since I learned these tools when I went on staff at The Hideaway Experience in 2010 I have continued to...
by Rhett Smith | Nov 30, 2015 | Marriage, Podcast, Restoration Therapy
One of the tools that has changed my life in such an amazing way…that at times it’s really hard to explain…is learning the Pain and Peace Cycle in the work of Terry Hargrave in his Restoration Therapy model. In fact, in Episode 21 of this podcast I...
by Rhett Smith | Nov 18, 2015 | Marriage, Podcast, Restoration Therapy
This last week my wife and I spent two days training with Sharon Hargrave in her Marriage Strong curriculum. There were several reasons why we wanted to attend the training: 1) We know how much working through our Pain and Peace Cycle has transformed our own marriage;...
by Rhett Smith | Sep 23, 2015 | Podcast, Restoration Therapy
One of the most powerful and life shaping influences in our lives is our family of origin. It is the primary context in which we develop, and that development continues on through the rest of our lives…this is the reason I decided to talk about this topic on...
by Rhett Smith | Aug 5, 2015 | Podcast, Restoration Therapy
About 5 years ago I was introduced to a therapy model that changed my life. And that’s not an exaggeration. It literally changed my life, beginning with me, then my marriage, then my parenting, then my therapy work, then friendships, and eventually in the work I...
by Rhett Smith | Apr 22, 2015 | Podcast
One of the issues that almost always comes up in my work with clients is the issue of forgiveness. It is the issue that often is not addressed, but the one that is most needed. So a few months ago when a pastor friend of mine asked me to come speak at his...
by Rhett Smith | Jun 4, 2014 | Marriage, Restoration Therapy
Four years ago I was presented with an amazing opportunity that changed the way I thought about marriage (my own and the couples I work with), and how I work with couple’s in a therapeutic context. I went up to The Hideaway Experience in Amarillo, Texas to...
by Rhett Smith | Jun 3, 2014 | Marriage, Restoration Therapy
“Somehow, even though we know that certain thoughts and behaviors are bad for us and are rooted in our own self-reactivity [negative patterns of coping], we return to those behaviors and usually find that these actions further assault our identities as human...
by Rhett Smith | Mar 27, 2013 | Anxiety
“According to recent brain studies, we are literally stuck in a rut: As a result, we choose our most instinctual coping behavior when certain feelings arise. We often choose this path because it is also the direction that confronts us with the least...
by Rhett Smith | Aug 16, 2011 | Marriage
[image by The Welsh Poppy] Differentiation is a natural process in committed relationships that involves developing more of a self while growing closer to your partner. Men often sacrifice their relationship to hold onto their sense of self. Women often sacrifice...
by Rhett Smith | Jul 27, 2011 | Therapy Practice
I’m currently reading a really great book, Restoration Therapy: Understanding and Guiding Healing in Marriage and Family Therapy by Terry D. Hargrave and Franz Pfitzer. In fact, I can’t recommend it enough. But as I was reading last night this section of...
by Rhett Smith | Jun 21, 2011 | Marriage
If you find me talking about something a lot then that means I’m a huge believer in it. And you would be hard pressed to find me talking more about something this last year than The Hideaway Marriage Experience and 5 Days to a New Marriage. I blogged about my...
by Rhett Smith | Jun 7, 2011 | Marriage
I would estimate that in about 70%-80% of the situations in which kids are brought into my office for counseling, the presenting problems have less to do with the individual child, and more to do with what is happening in the larger family system, and more...
by Rhett Smith | Jan 10, 2011 | Marriage
[image by the Welsh Poppy] In a marriage, changes abound. The couple may move houses. They may move states. They might have a child, or two, or three, or more. The mom may work as a stay at home mom. Or maybe even the dad might take up that work (I did for a short...
by Rhett Smith | Dec 7, 2010 | Marriage
“Relationships are like a mirror. They show us who we are, how our behavior is perceived, and where we fit. We see a little of who we need to become, where our behavior is inappropriate, and how we must change to fit better in relationships, and this is...
