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"What does it mean to live radically and boldly, so that you don't wake up one day -- decades too late -- wondering what the hell just happened? Where did my life go and why didn't I do the things I wanted to do?" ~Sir Ken Robinson

At Relationship Gardening, I, Shannon Batts (on the left in very purple 2014 version), can help you take that bold, radical step to better choices, better habits of communication, better loving!

Licensed (CA MFC34477, OR C2379), Advanced Gottman trained, find me in Portland, Oregon, or invite me to do an interactive presentation for your organization. Live video consultation for Oregonians and Californians!

Innovative creativity and education thinker and international consultant, Sir Ken continues:

"The thing is, if you are a leader, if you are running a state or a company, or a family or a school, you can’t make people develop, you can’t make them creative, you can’t make them find their talent. Any more than a farmer makes a plant grow. I mean a farmer or a gardener doesn’t make a plant grow, the plant grows itself.  You don’t stand around attaching petals and roots to this thing, it grows itself. 

What you do, if you’re any good, is your provide the ideal conditions for growth (...)  the great conditions under which it will grow. We know that’s possible, because we know how easy it is to provide conditions under which things wilt and die.   So, a part of this is climate change.   It’s creating different social climates, different institutional climates, where people give it their best and become their best."

In the interview excerpt above, Sir Ken Robinson brings our attention to creating nurturing social and educational climates.  He is so right that it is easy to be part of the wilt and die.  My mission with Relationship Gardening is to inspire and inform people that it is just as easy to be part of the heal and thrive side of life.  Let's create more ideal conditions for growth in your marriage! 

One form of wilt and die is simply doing nothing special in your relationship.  If you ignore it-it will go away. Seriously, you're looking at lawyers and divorce heartbreak if you remain passive. Another form of wilt and die is to bite it before it bites you.  Even if you think you are bitey for good reasons, again-I have a good collaborative lawyer you can meet with because bitey, hostile, mean behavior eventually sits you at the lawyer's table. 

Maybe at first it might pose a challenge to make the switch to a relationship that is healthy enough to produce good feelings and memories, if you are a bit weighed down in mucky conditions.  Relationships can feel overwhelming when raising children, caring for elders, economic pressures, or impaired health, any single one of which might be too much for us.  Life can feel like a deluge -seed rot everywhere from too much downpour!

Speaking from experience both as a homeschooling mother, and a relationship coach, it takes some dedicated (meaning everyday without giving up) effort to practice nurturing habits of positivity toward ourselves, children and partners. And you have to know what those habits are! 

Sure it's easy for some without any challenge to your life-but add in the challenges and you cannot survive without the food to keep growing!  You needed it to build the foundation of your relationship and you especially need it when going through tough phases of life.

What can you do right now to provide the nurturing conditions for a relationship climate change? 

If you need ideas, structure or encouragement to shift to the heal and thrive, to grow your healthy Relationship Gardening of no regrets-call or email me today (see top right contact icons or green button below)!

love,

Shannon

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 Shannon Batts, Founder and CEO of Relationship Gardening, Licensed Professional Counselor for Oregonians (C2379) and Licensed Marriage, & Family Therapist for Californians (MFC34477), life coach for all the rest, has degrees and certificates, blah blah blah..., look over there-a Disapproving Rabbit!


 What books, authors or shows have moved you to tears of joy, taught you something life changing, moved you? Here are a few of my favorites: Queen Sugar, Bell Hooks, Janet Mock, Connie Willis (Doomsday Book), Nancy Farmer (Sea of Trolls), The IT Crowd, Crazy Ex Girlfriend, Schitts Creek, Atlanta, Layla Saad (Me and White Supremacy), Terry Pratchett, Allen Ginsburg.  
My favorite job was consultant for an alternative HS.  Think competing gangs, poverty, teen parents, drive bys (my car got shot up), lots of donut bribes at their homes before school, kids with guts to heal and make it better for the next generation.




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Here we have what is known as a "Disapproving Rabbit."   Need I say more?
Get yourself a 10 year commitment (and a furry housemate) by adopting one of the hundreds of bunnies from Rabbit Advocate of Portland, Oregon,  adoptarabbit.org
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New Enhanced Relationship Check-Up now available with streamlined 30% less questions, an easy way to reassess progress if we'd like, and plenty of information about strengths and what to repair. Available for $39 (to Gottman) for clients of Approved Member therapist Shannon Batts.
DONATE by clicking here to go to the checkout Square site where you can enter your donation of any amount and support resource redirection of free services to
​marginalized clients. 
Or donate via Paypal.me/shannonbatts
​Thank you!
 
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http://relationshipgardening.com/couples-therapist-reviews-portland.html
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How to find a good marriage counselor?  Ask Shannon Batts in Portland, Oregon.  Note from Shannon: Make sure they have advanced training (not just degrees and licenses) with couples, can describe what they learned and how they deliver it to you, and are also HAPPILY married! Can they speak to their privilege or marginalizations and how they impact counseling with you?
verified by Psychology Today
  



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​Shannon Batts, Licensed Professional Counselor of Portland, Oregon, lic# C2379, and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist for Californians, lic# MFT 34477, is Marriage Friendly, with better than neutrality toward the outcome of your life long love commitment. Shannon Batts is a Portland, Oregon counselor, with advanced skills, education and training in assisting couples (extremely rare among counselors). Lesbian, gay, trans, mixed gender identity, questioning gender, nonbinary, and straight couples of all ages seek out tools and support for their relationships from Shannon Batts. Shannon trains ongoingly to be antiracist and is a facilitator and consultant at Race Talks PDX. Transgender, Black Americans, or unhoused clients will find amazing flexibility in counseling rates if you need it because you've been through enough!


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www.couplesintransition.com and www.spousesgroup.com also arrive here at https://relationshipgardening.com/
so as to direct couples facing gender transition to excellence in support for making it through transition together.

Electronic/internet based communication is not a guarantee of privacy as it is always subject to security breach or hacking. You do maintain the right to email, text or video chat regardless of the risk.
 Shannon is the counselor's counselor where couples go to grow a happy marriage, with Gottman research based relationship and marriage help and telehealth video sessions.  Marriage Counseling, couples' coaching, premarital counseling, help for transgender or non binary coming out in marriage, support for spouses of transgender or non binary partners, couples group for transgender partners and cisgender spouses, questioning gender in your marriage, gender affirming referral letters, marriage retreats, marriage workshops, antiracist coaching for engaged couples, antiracism groups for white people, antiracism couples groups, antiracism groups for professionals, custom antiracism groups, marriage affairs or adultery, porn or sex addiction or compulsion in your marriage, couples communication training-whatever you call it-make sure your best marriage counseling choice in CA, or in Portland, Oregon has Advanced Gottman Institute aka Relationship Research Institute training.  A Gottman trained therapist like Shannon Batts knows how to move couples from sticky negativity to a garden of new possibilities from the very first couples' session.  Services available by Zoom for all of CA and OR. relationshipgardening.com

Photo used under Creative Commons from Carly & Art