Mission Statement
At the Transition Institute of Marin, we provide healing and empowerment for men and women going through the difficult transitions of divorce and separation.
Any life change is difficult but the dissolution of a marriage or long term relationship can have a tremendous and long-lasting impact on one's life.
Our updated tagline is "Guiding People Through Change" TM for two reasons: we assist people as they go through changes in their lives, but we also support people to find personal and inter-personal growth by changing old, out-dated thought habits and behavior patterns.
Why We Work Primarily With Women:
We are happy to work with couples, children and men but we do focus our groups and workshops primarily around women and how they are impacted by divorce. We do so for a reason. Research indicates that women who reach out to other women for support during this tumultuous time tend to have an easier and faster healing process than those who don't. A landmark UCLA study suggests that women respond to stress with a cascade of brain chemicals that cause us to make and maintain friendships with other women. It's a stunning finding that has turned five decades of stress research -- most of it on men -- upside down.
Now the researchers suspect that women have a larger behavioral repertoire than just “fight or flight.” “In fact,” says Dr. Klein, “it seems that when the hormone oxytocin is released as part of the stress response in a woman, it buffers the fight or flight response and encourages her to tend children and gather with other women instead. When she actually engages in this 'tending or befriending,' studies suggest that more oxytocin is released, which further counters stress and produces a calming effect.”
"This calming response does not occur in men,” says Dr. Klein, “because testosterone -- which men produce in high levels when they're under stress -- seems to reduce the effects of oxytocin.” “Estrogen,” she adds, “seems to enhance it.” For more information on this study, visit the UCLA website at: http://www.anapsid.org/cnd/gender/tendfend.html
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