200 North 9th Street Columbia, Mo. 65201

(573) 424-8220

(573) 424-8220

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    • Home
    • About Lynne Harris
    • Contact
    • Fees
    • Forms
    • Location
    • Policies
    • Services
  • Home
  • About Lynne Harris
  • Contact
  • Fees
  • Forms
  • Location
  • Policies
  • Services

Lynne Harris Counseling and Mediation LLC

Lynne Harris Counseling and Mediation LLCLynne Harris Counseling and Mediation LLCLynne Harris Counseling and Mediation LLC

Lynneharris284@gmail.com

Lynneharris284@gmail.com Lynneharris284@gmail.com

Services

Individual Therapy

 

I see a variety of clients for individual therapy including children,  teens, and adults.  The initial goal of therapy is to establish rapport  and a trusting relationship with clients.  For children this may  involve a play therapy format.

Clients generally come in for an Intake session in which they provide  information related to their history and background and the reasons  they are seeking services at this time.  When children are seen in  individual therapy, I meet with parents for the intake session to  provide pertinent information related to the problems the child or  children may be having.  It should be noted that when parents are  divorced and have joint legal custody, both parents need to be informed  about services and be a part of the process.

Together we will identify the goals of therapy and work together to accomplish those goals.


Family Therapy

When there are relationship problems within families it is often  important to include a portion… or all members of the family to address  the issues.  Family therapy is based on a System’s approach in which the  philosophy is each family member has a direct impact on other family  members, and the whole family system is impacted by problems between its  members.  As with individual therapy, problem areas in the family will  be addressed and goals for the family will be identified.

Co-Parenting Counseling

 

When Parents are no longer living together due to separation or  divorce, it is common for problems to arise in the co-parenting  relationships.  Disagreements may include differences in parenting  styles, discipline strategies, poor communication, how parenting time is  divided, etc.  We know that it is critical to keep children out of the  middle of parental disputes.  Unfortunately all too often, the parental  conflict can “spill over” to the children and they find themselves in  the middle between two parents they love.  Co-parenting counseling can  assist parents in improving their communication, minimizing their  conflicts, developing problem solving strategies, as well as taking a  closer look at the relationship boundaries that are vital in maintaining  a good parenting relationship.


There are often two simultaneous grieving processes occurring when  couples are separating or divorcing; the loss of the couple  relationship, and the loss of the family.  Individuals can be at two  very different stages when  grieving these losses and they often need  help in understanding and working through these issues, as well as  understanding the perspective of their counterpart.


I have worked with children for many years and have expertise in the  area of child development as well as helping children through difficult  transitions.  These areas are often critical in the planning and  decision making for how children will divide their time between two  households.  It is vital for the parents to work together in coming up  with a parenting plan that will best meet the needs of their children.   This can be extremely challenging, particularly when their are several  children with varying ages and developmental stages as well as  personality styles.  There is no “one size fits all” parenting plan.   The best plan is one that is developmentally sensitive and tailored for  the specific needs of each child, while taking into account the parents  schedules, work, needs, etc.  Particularly when dealing with very young  children, parenting plans may need to be “dynamic,” in that they change  over time to accommodate the child’s ever changing developmental  stages.  


The best plan is also one that the parents can fully support  and agree to

No parenting plan can ever be what a parent truly wants…because we  know every parent wants their child with them full time.  We also know  that children need to have healthy loving relationships with both of  their parents and it is the responsibility of the parents to make the  best plan possible for their children.  This can be a very challenging  task for parents, and they often benefit by talking together with an  unbiased person who has at the forefront the best interest of their  child.


If there was ever a time to take the “high road” in life…this is it.

Mediation

 

Mediation offers divorcing or separating couples a fair process in  which they can discuss and decide for themselves arrangements for their  children, support, and property division.  This process is designed to  reduce the adversarial element often encountered in a divorce proceeding  and can save time and money…but more importantly, the people who know  their children best… can be empowered to make their own decisions about  their children.

Mediation is a problem-solving conversation facilitated by a balanced  and impartial third person, known as the mediator.  The role of the  mediator is to help participants identify issues that are important to  each of them, communicate their ideas, explore options, reduce  misunderstanding, clarify priorities, explore areas of compromise,  negotiate differences, and if possible, come to mutually acceptable  agreements.


Some clients are court-ordered into the mediation process while others come in on a voluntary basis.


There are various styles of mediation and each mediator brings to the  process their own set of particular skills to assist them in this  process.  I was trained in the “Transformative approach” to mediation in  which the focus is on the parties’ relationship and interactions.  We  sometimes have to address the obstacles to forging a better relationship  in the parenting relationship.  Often the parents did not have  effective communication with one another in the couple relationship and  those “old patterns” of ineffectual interactions may need to be  addressed so more effective ways to talk with one another can be  established.


For further information regarding Mediation, visit www.Mediate.com

 


COMPREHENSIVE CASE REVIEW AND CONSULTATION

In extremely complicated cases of high conflict divorce in which  there have been serious allegations of child abuse, alienation  behaviors, or other potentially harmful behaviors on a parent’s part, I  have been asked to provide consultation on cases to assist in trying to  evaluate what has really happened in these families.


When young children have made allegations of physical and/or sexual  abuse and information is inconsistent or vague, the court is often left  with difficult decisions regarding what is in the best interest of  children.

These cases can be difficult because there is a range of  possibilities or hypothesis that could be at play in these families. We  know that children who make allegations in the midst of high conflict  divorce fall within the same substantiation rate for abuse as other  cases that do not involve high conflict. We also know that young  children can be suggestible and more easily lead or influenced by  adults, particularly if adults have questioned them using leading or  suggestible questions. There are times when well intentioned parents can  simply misunderstand what a young child has said or misinterpreted the  meaning of statements made. Unfortunately, some children and teens can  truly be alienated from a parent and twist or distort events that have  happened, or even falsify information in an effort to meet the emotional  need of a parent who aims to severe the relationship with another  parent. In other cases, estrangement from a parent may look like  alienation, when in fact the parent has demonstrated behaviors towards  the child/ren or other parent that have distanced a child from the  estranged parent. These more extreme cases are often very controversial  and can have professionals at odds as to what is really going on, how  the cases should be handled, or the kinds of recommendations that need  to be made. It is critical for these types of cases to be adequately  assessed and diagnosed so that the reality of the situation is brought  to light, and in turn, the appropriate interventions, court orders, and  long term goals for the family can be addressed.


This type of Case Review and Consultation involves a complete review  of the case record, including court appearances and orders, consultation  with the Guardian ad Litem and any mental health professionals involved  with the family, school personnel, collateral contacts, etc. Forensic  interviews that have been conducted with the children would also be  reviewed, as well as direct interviews with the parents, children, or  any other relative or significant others that might help to shed some  light, on the case.


The goal would be to provide as much information to the court as  possible that could help in the endeavor of making the best decisions  possible for children in the midst of complicated family dynamics.


Copyright © 2025 Lynne Harris, LPC, LCSW - All Rights Reserved.

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