Current Events for LiveNLearn® ConsultingArchivesMay 2018May has all moms running around to make sure to grab gifts of gratitude to teachers and make doctors’ appointments for camp registration. Our mission is to help individuals and families become their best selves by harnessing the unique gifts that have brought them past success. Thanks to our ability to provide in-home counseling, we are able to provide personalized and intensive care over a short period of time to get your family up and running better than ever in record time.

This business, now officially trademarked, also works intensely with those special families that have a special needs child. May is a HUGE TRANSITIONAL MONTH for special needs families. Schools gather IEP teams to create transition plans. Kids have to adjust from school schedules to summer schedules while parents spend hours on the phone with current providers keeping service hours in place and insurance companies learning what new summer services are (hopefully) covered. We are here to support you! We will add more tools to your toolbox to deal with the added stress and advocate on behalf of your special student in school.

April 2018Happy Spring! While most people were making plans to get away, we went back to

school. It is important to make sure that we are staying current on research about anxiety, depression, and family dynamics. Psychological struggles look different in tweens and teens than adults. Those that need medication as part of a comprehensive treatment plan deserve clinicians that stay current on the latest

drugs on the market and what research says works best for you. We are proud to continue our commitment to you by attending these well-researched, professional courses.

March 2018Spring break can be a welcomed week of family time and warm weather getaways. Or, it can be an incredibly stressful time juggling an unrelenting work schedule and

overly energetic children. Thanks to brave clients who believe that a marital tune-up is not a shameful practice, LiveNLearn has been busy welcoming new clients for couples counseling. Parents of children with special needs also know spring is IEP season. New diagnoses of ADHD and annual reviews for children with SPD or ASD wake up the real monster of anxiety. Sometimes all you need is a professional cheerleader, a family therapist and educational advocate, to remind you that YOU are the expert on your child. Feel free to reach out for support; my pom-poms are ready!

February 2018Sadly, our Valentine’s Day was turned from a day of love and affection to another tragedy in need of thoughts and prayers. My fifteen years in the classroom can be

put on a timeline of national school shootings. My first teaching job in California sent me to an Army base in Barstow, NV to learn triage in the wake of Columbine. I prepped my kids for lockdown drills up to my last month as a middle school teacher in Tucson, AZ. I took my experiences in the classroom and coupled it with my counseling and advanced education on trauma to write the

blog, #minuteofaction. Take care moms, dads, grandfriends, teachers, and communities who want to prepare, not scare, their students. We are here to help.

We have also met with our team of experts, accountants and lawyers, to make sure we are able to provide you with all current information. YES, you can write our services off of your taxes as a medical expense! Simply take your statement and/or canceled checks or QuickPay receipts to your tax preparer. There have also been some interesting changes in IL law that will help all children have access to gifted instruction. Contact us for more information!

January 2018Happy New Year! I realize that many of you started 2018 with promises, or resolutions, to be better, do better, and look better. But, you don’t need a new you for the new year! Read our blog about how to walk the thin line between setting goals for the new year and setting yourself up for a vicious cycle of self-shame.

As many of you know, I am a proud Northwestern University Wildcat. I am also an alumnus who pushes my Wildcat family to look out for special needs families like mine. A big thank you to the assistant athletic director and his team for wanting to bring NU Sports to all abled kids. Stay tuned for an update about a sensory friendly football game at Ryan Field.

December 2017Thanksgiving is supposed to be the holiday where we list the things for which we are grateful. But, there is no way we can end this amazing year without thanking all of you who clicked, liked, and followed us on Facebook. In the last month alone, our page views sky-rocked up 140% and reached went up 2,478%! Those are not typos. Lesson one: we were a little lazy with our online presence in November. Lesson two: our friends are loyal and are not afraid to let you know. 

In the upcoming weeks, we are going to continue to expand our network of resources to help with educational and family legal issues and professional help for children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). 

November 2017We created a great online conversation about bullying in the workplace with our blog post, "Why Does It Still Feel Like High School". The topic of bullying still remains a hot-button issue, but it is incredible how talking about workplace bullying has impacted so many adults in all industries. So, we have created a three-part series about bulling on Lessons Learned. Make sure to subscribe in order to get each article. 

As the holidays roll around, we send our heartfelt thanks to those of you who continue to send us referrals. Thanks to your praise, mental health is starting to lose its stigma, and more clients are getting help to make sure they have a happy holiday season. 

October 2017Shake Break, our support group for parents of children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), gave us wonderful opportunities to meet new families and learn from

each other how to navigate our special needs world. It was amazing to see emotionally exhausted mommies take a deep breath for an hour. This month was also an amazing chance to network with some of the businesses providing ABA services to children on with autism. Thank you to Orange Therapy Group, North Shore Pediatric Therapy, Clearbrook, and Cornerstone Autism Services for taking the time to educate us about your unique approach to the community. 

It is always part of our mission to give back to the community that consistently supports us by giving us outstanding reviews and referrals. This month, we were honored to donate sessions to the winner of the auction for Walk For Parker for its 4th annual family 3K walk/5K run charity event to bring awareness to child and infant loss. 

September 2017The new school year started, and LiveNLearn was ready to go! We attended a seminar to stay current with mental health for tweens and teens where we learned about current trends in substance abuse and suicide. With school on the brain, another special edition of Lessons Learned was published to help parents raise self-confident children. We also used our presence on Facebook to introduce our services to a few new clients who our on their way to being closer, happier families.

August 2017It was a month of all work and all play with no medium setting. Hours of outreach working with Stop Soldier Suicide, a referral from Give An Hour, provided karmic rewards.

Shake Break has two homes! If you have a child diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), you can meet, commiserate, and consult with moms going through the same thing day or night. Check here or our Facebook page for details.

July 2017

It is truly an honor to announce that we have been approved as a provider for Give An Hour, an organization which provides a network of mental health providers who volunteer time and services to our military and their families. Within days of our approval, we were connected to a local military family in need of counseling for a service member and her family. 

June 2017

We have been grinding to put together our first support group! "Shake Break" is a support group for parents of children with special needs. Thanks to the support of Autism Home Support for getting the word out and the Bernard Weinger JCC in Northbrook for providing the space. Check back for more details as we solidify dates and times. 

May 2017

Thank you to the Village of Schaumburg for inviting us to participate in your Wellness Expo. We had a great time giving out stress balls, bookmarks, and notepads with our free advice about how to incorporate easy tips and tricks of preventative mental health. Those quick conversations have led to some wonderful opportunities to work with the Human Resources department and local leaders working with our aging population. Great work everyone!

April 2017

Thank you to Rotary International for hosting Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi for networking and conversation. I was able to ask the Congressman about Free Access to Public Education (FAPE) and how to work with his Republican colleague, Peter Roskim, in advocating for students in their shared district in Barrington. We accepted more clients for educational advocacy thanks to your referrals. With summer just a few months away, feel free to contact us about questions for proper programs and activities to preserve goals met and exceeded during the school year.

March 2017

Back to the books! Lessons Learned, our internationally successful blog, will be starting a special series! We will be recommended books, from young adult fiction to historical fiction, that are great entries to therapeutic lessons. With its first publication set for April, you will have a creative, new way to learn and reflect on empathy, generational family identity, and individualized education. Check back here to get updated reading lists and join our online book club! 

February 2017

It always feel too early to talk about the next school year...unless you are a school district. This is the time of year where districts are trying to figure out

how many teachers, aides, and specialists they will need for the 2017-2018 school year. It's also the beginning of our busy season. Thank you to the parents who have trusted us to guide them through the anxiety of IEP or placement meetings. 

January 2017

Thank you to the Schaumburg chapter of Rotary International for their warm reception and intelligent questions. We had a lively, interaction based on an abbreviated version of LiveNLearn's most popular workshop, Help for the Helpers. Watch out world! There is a whole room of envigorated people who possess the secrets of human sustainability, staying present and engaged when in the service of others.

November 2016

Check your calendars and clear conflicts! LiveNLearn will be speaking to the Schaumburg AM chapter of Rotary International. If you don’t belong to Rotary, you can book your own speaking engagement or workshop. Contact us know to build you up to have an invigorating holiday season.

October 2016

Getting together with smart colleagues who are good friends from graduate school leads to new energy! New energy leads to new opportunities! Arrangements have been made to help the selfless members of Rotary International. Stay tuned for more information.

September 2016

Not to be outdone by our adolescent clients, LiveNLearn headed back to school this month. Amy completed another extensive (15 hours, to be exact) course on trauma. This time, the focus was on secondary trauma, how hearing the stories and witnessing the painful experiences of others has dramatic effect on us. The need to continue to present our "Help for the Helpers" workshop was reinforced, and we are invigorated!

 It also seems to be the time where educational evaluations and IEPs are clogging up the calendars at school. Now is the time to make sure our calendars don't get too packed to make sure we are preparing you for those important meetings AND in those meetings with you as educational

advocates. Please make sure you contact us for your FREE consultation to see how we can help. 

August 2016

Back to school! With lists in hand, we all trudged back to Target, Office Depot, Barnes and Noble, etc. so our kids can trudge back to into the classroom. LiveNLearn was there to help with a whole month of our blog, Lessons Learned, dedicated to education. With nearly 45 years in combined experience, we gleefully opened our hearts and minds to give tips and tricks for teachers and parents. 

July 2016

Thank you for all of your support by attending our events! It was great to meet new people at Orinoco and discuss how important it is to reconnect with yourself. The bookmarks will remind you about those six easy steps to finding your balance. Want more? Or, did you miss this educational workshop? Come to the follow up seminar! We will be at the Gurnee Panera Bread on August 16 from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm. Tickets can be purchased at the door for $10; if you bring your spouse, partner, or anyone from your village to help you (and themselves), the second ticket is only $5. (I love a good sale…)

Thank you to the Schaumburg chapter of Rotary International for the invitation to speak on October 26. We are excited to share our thoughts and best practices for educating low-income children and maintaining our strength as advocates for those less fortunate.

June 2016

We are announcing a new service! Based on the advice, subtle and severe, from clients, LNL followers, and friends, we are pleased to announce our educational advocacy services. We use our decades of experience in the classroom to help families navigate the business of education. We will help you understand the process of getting an IEP and join you when it is written to empower you as the leader of your child’s educational team. We will help you and your college-bound teen stay on top of deadlines for college visits, applications, and essays. We can even help tutor for the ACT or SAT in

order to elevate your student’s score to broaden school choice. Contact us to create a specialized approach to your student’s future.

Although our event for first responders was canceled, our event sponsored by Shaklee on July 22 is ready to go! Check back here for details.

Thank you for all of the positive comments, shares, and subscriptions for our Lessons Learned blog. Keep clicking to learn more practical tips to live a more mentally healthier life.

May 2016

Welcome to the blogosphere! We started our blog, Lessons Learned: Everyday Mental Health Tips. Thank you to everyone who subscribed to get these weekly posts sent directly to their email and for the hundreds who check in on Facebook and/or LinkedIn. Feel free to contact us to suggest a topic or suggest more helpful tools in a specific area.

Do you have your tickets for First Steps for First Responders? This is a unique opportunity to gain entry into the close knit family of firefighters and EMS providers. We will be taking about the warning signs of burn out, poor relationships with co-workers, apathy, and family discord, and help these revered professionals reconnect with the best versions of themselves in order to love their work and themselves.

April 2016

The last few weeks have been an amazing journey of meeting new professionals and planning incredible events. Rae Luskin and I shared our vision for social change and started to plan an all-day event that brings together storytellers and activists. Carrie Booton and I shared a love of chai latte while finalizing details for a wellness event that combines a healthy body with a healthy mind.

LiveNLearn met dozens of these successful business women at Breathe Deep 2016 earlier this month. Our focus at this event was recognizing the "Sandwich Generation," the generation of adults who are squeezed between supporting their children and aging parents financially and emotionally, as well as celebrating volunteers and EMS by talking about our Help for the Helpers workshop. Our thanks go out to Kovitz Shifrin Nesbit, in general, and one of their gifted lawyers, Jessica Weiner   who

was speaking regarding current family law and estate planning issues facing women today. 

March 2016

The change in season lead to a number of families bravely seeking a change for more healthy relationships. Thank you for trusting us to help parents and children, husbands and wives, reconnect and love one another without judgment. We are still accepting new clients! Use your Health Savings Account (HSA) to invest in a brigher future for you and your family. Don't hesitate contacting us for your FREE 15 minute consultation. 

February 2016

SAVE THE DATE! LiveNLearn will be at Breathe Deep 2016 on Saturday, April 9. What a great event to get back to what makes you happy and leave the worries and expectations of mom, wife, daughter, and co-worker behind. What's even better than free admission? Free swag! Stop by our booth to grab some LiveNLearn stress balls and coupon for a FREE 15 minute consultation. Our focus at this event will be recognizing the "Sandwich Generation," the generation of adults who are squeezed between supporting their children and aging parents financially and emotionally. Hope to see you there!

January 2016

LiveNLearn proudly announces a partnership with the Firefighter Behavioral Alliance. These noble professionals work tirelessly for suicide prevention for their brothers and sisters who risk their lives to keep us safe. Keep checking our website and Facebook for announcements about our upcoming workshop this spring.

December 2015

LiveNLearn wrapped up our year by starting a relationship with the Pima Air and Space Museum to help them design engaging curriculum based on their current exhibitions. Check back here often in order to see how LiveNLearn is helping this local museum partner with schools to make sure students are exceeding the Common Core standards for multiple disciplines.

November 2015

We finalized our Help for the Helpers workshop, a psychoeducational workshop designed to understand how people can take care of themselves while answering the call to help those less fortunate. Click here to see details about how organizations can “pay” their volunteers.

October 2015

LiveNLearn has gone back to basics by following our passions! Each of our consultants has spent time working with the people who inspired our work. We have added new clients for life coaching, completed new drafts of published material, and rejoined faculty to bring the love of books to a whole new student body. Select any of these exciting events to connect directly with the consultant pursuing their dreams

September 2015

Our consultants are spending the fall back in the classroom. We are participating in continuing education opportunities in mental health issues for children and adolescents in order to provide you with the most current information available. We are even taking business classes to make sure we are providing the professional services to which you are entitled.

August 2015LiveNLearn is proud to announce that our workshop for Holocaust educators is here!Review our brochure and contact us to book your workshop today!

July 2015

LiveNLearn is gearing up to help teachers start the school year with our newly designed workshops for bullying prevention and classroom management. Contact us now to have us visit your school during staff development days to help start the year right.

June 2015

LiveNLearn participated in the inaugural conference for the Always Remember Institute. This amazing opportunity connected diverse educators to explore reading and writing about the Holocaust. Scholars from Yad Veshem and Yeshiva University facilitated sessions to analyze specific works and share teaching strategies. The highlight of the conference was lunch with Holocaust survivors.

Amy Slutzky with Sabina Callwood portrait of Sabina Wagschlal-Callwood, born May 8, 1936 in Antwerp, Belgium

JD Wyneken with Ruth Stobin