SANITY SAVERS: Tips for Women to Live A Balanced Life is filled with suggestions to save your sanity every day of the year.

A must for any woman seeking to find her balance!

Schedules are busy, parents and children race to and from after school activities which can be dental appointments, sports practice, tutorials, or whatever, and sadly, family dinners are occurring less frequently, if at all. Yet there is no refuting the value of families eating meals together.

A meal is about sharing and sharing is about caring and caring is about family and community. Children need to experience these elements as they find their place in the world, which begins with knowing that they have a place in their family.

A friend of mine stayed with her good friend's teenage children while their parents were out of town. When she told the children what time dinner would be, they looked shocked, telling her that they hardly ever ate dinner together as a family. Well, my friend told the children that she expected to have them to sit with her at the table for dinner and she also informed them that this experience was to be technology-free!

Cell phones, beepers, pagers, I-pads, TV, etc., were off as they sat together for a meal each evening. They talked, they laughed, they shared stories about their days. Dinner time together recharged the children for evening's homework time or whatever needed to be done. Perhaps when the parents return, the children will want to continue this "new tradition" of dining together and talking about everyone's day's events, politics, news, or whatever interests them and their parents.

Research also confirms that children who share a family meal on a predictable, regular basis are generally happier, healthier and perform better at school than their peers who do not share a meal with family members. Teenagers, in particular, much to many people's surprise, benefit from dining together with their brothers, sisters, parents and other extended family members.

Eating a meal together has many benefits including conditioning a child to what his or her culture is, how it works, and what is expected. Conversations, family stories, jokes, and daily news can all be shared at a table with (hopefully nutritious) food, without TV or other technological devices. This enhances the opportunity for a truly human connection to occur.

Begin to see family mealtime as an anchor in your own as well as your children's lives. Introduce one night and put it on your calendar. Then, move to two and in doing so, appreciate that by having this ritual, you will be changing the culture of your family in a positive way.

TODAY Show (NBC)
Please check website, www.drdaleatkins.com, for latest updates, including changes of time.

Greenwich Women's Wealth Roundtable Retreat
February 6-7th: Facilitator / Lecturer.
Mayflower Inn, Washington, CT.

Alzheimer's Disease Discussion
February 10th: 3-5PM. Discussion focused on Alzheimer's Disease and its effect on the family as part of a live patient presentation for 1st year medical students.
Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami Beach, FL.

Canyon Ranch Miami Lecture Series
February 17th: 7:30PM. Featured Author. Topic: Couples Communication: From the Heart.
The Conservatory, Canyon Ranch, 6801 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach, FL.

Jumpstart Alumni Event
February 22nd: 6-8PM. Moderator for Panel of Jumpstart Founders at Jumpstart Alumni Event.
The Yale Club of New York City, 50 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017.

Dr. Atkins is also the focus of an article, Work, Life, Balance, written by James Reisler. The article will appear in the December 2011 issue of TC Today Magazine. A PDF of the article will be available on www.drdaleatkins.com mid-December.

About.com
Topics by Dr. Dale Atkins:
Tips for Getting Along with In-Laws: http://video.about.com/marriage/Tips-for-Getting-Along-With-In-Laws.htm;
Warning Signs of a Troubled Marriage: http://video.about.com/marriage/Warning-Signs-of-a-Troubled-Marriage.htm;
Issues to Deal with before Marriage: http://video.about.com/marriage/Types-of-Issues-to-Deal-With-Before-Getting-Married.htm;
Warning Signs of Cheating Spouse: http://video.about.com/marriage/Warning-Signs-of-Cheating-Spouses.htm; Tips for Maintaining Interfaith Marriages: http://video.about.com/marriage/Tips-for-Maintaining-Interfaith-Marriages.htm;
Tips for Growing Old Together:
http://video.about.com/marriage/Tips-for-Growing-Old-Together.htm;
and, Most Important Questions to Ask Before Getting Married: http://video.about.com/marriage/Most-Important-Questions-to-Ask-Before-Getting-Married.htm.

Visit Marlo Thomas' site to access my relationship column and Mondays with Marlo video stream. http://marlothomas.aol.com/search/?q=dale+atkins

Read Dr. Atkins' chapter, "Therapeutic Issues with Recipients of Cochlear Implants," in the new text, Psychotherapy With Deaf Clients From Diverse Groups, Second Edition.
Edited by Irene Leigh, and published by Gallaudet University Press.

Read Dr. Atkins' chapter, "Family Involvement and Counseling in Serving Children Who Possess Impaired Hearing," in the new text, Introduction to Aural Rehabilitation.
Edited by Raymond H. Hull, and published by Plural Publishing.

I invite you to visit my website to access archives of articles and interviews on line.

Create Calm

Visualize the image of the deep ocean waters that remain calm while storms rage above. We all have the ability to find the calm that resides deep within us as the surfaces of our own lives appear tumultuous. Seek calm within your soul through deep breathing, meditation, or visualization, as you discover ways to support yourself during difficult times.

Whether or not you believe that souls live forever, there are lessons to be learned from those who are close to death. As people reflect on their lives, they often recall and sometimes regret the way they behaved in their relationships.

One of the most important lessons we can learn is how to maximize the potentials in our everyday lives, particularly, extracting from the myriad opportunities, ways to be kind, empathetic, helpful, compassionate, and forgiving.

At different points in our life we may have different regrets. In great part, how we incorporate the feelings and lessons associated with these regrets determines the quality, depth, purpose, joy, connection, and meaning we have in our lives.

A few common regrets we can do something about now are:

Work Less and Spend Time with One's Family. - Find a way to be more "present" with your family when you are with them. Many people regret working so hard that they miss much of their children's growing up, and / or miss out on connecting to and supporting their partners' growth in meaningful ways.

Live a Life That Reflects Your True Character. - Better to live a life that is truly, authentically, yours rather than a life that reflects what someone else envisioned for you. When someone says, "you should be" or "you should do" it is important to weigh their opinion carefully against your own inner voice and direction.

Express Your Feelings. - Some people regret having not expressed their true feelings. They may have fear of inciting someone else's anger or disappointment so they bury their feelings. Some people regret expressing feelings, particularly anger, in ways that were hurtful.

Break Old Patterns. - People regret rehashing history rather than learning from earlier experiences, letting them go, and integrating lessons learned from those experiences into present and future relationships. Learning ways to break destructive habits allows people the opportunity to let themselves laugh, play, be spontaneous, and embrace enjoyment in their life.

Once we realize the regrets we or others hold, we can pay attention to living a life with purpose, meaning, and joy no matter what our circumstance. And we will likely have fewer regrets when we live with more focus and consciousness.

"Keep a green tree in your heart and perhaps a songbird will come."

Chinese Proverb