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Counseling

Select a link or scroll down for more info.		*Click here for more info on Hamlet*	Click here for more info on Josiah
Family	Child
Marital	Anxiety
Adolescent	Depression

Family
Fighting for power in your family can be both exhausting and embarrassing. Counseling at Life Strategies seeks to secure each member’s place in their complementary family roles. Negotiating family structure can be especially challenging if you or your mate has watched their own parents battle these issues. But your family is worth fighting for! At Life Strategies you can take the time you need to reorganize your thinking as well as your plan for action.

Marital
The marriage relationship can excite, encourage, and empower you in your day-to-day living. Or over time, it can drain, discourage, and deplete you. At Life Strategies Counseling we want to train you and your mate to resolve conflict that has hindered your marital growth. Successfully resolving communication problems will put your marriage back on the track to renewed intimacy.

Adolescent
Peer pressure is only one issue in a long line of pressures facing the American teen today. We help adolescents come to grips with who they are in a changing world of relative values and fluctuating standards. Nose rings, tattoos, and tongue studs are seen to some as visible signs of rebellion in our society. However, the warning signs of trouble for your teen come in a much more subtle way.

Child
Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity? We seek to find non-medical solutions to your child’s attention problems. Through our comprehensive assessment and evaluation process we identify children who can be helped without the use of psychotropic drugs such as Ritalin. Should medication be the best option for your child, we are able to work with your family physician for medial intervention or provide a referral to one of the psychiatrists we frequently use.

Erratic behavior such as anger, depression or anxiety can be clues to a deeper problem for your child. Academic and peer pressures, bullying, divorce, separation, and conflict can trigger defense mechanisms in children. Many times, we as parents are the last to find out that our child has been subject to abusive environments. As always, getting to the root of the problem is much more important than smoothing it over.

Anxiety
The cares of this world can echo so loudly in our minds that finding a solution can seem impossible. As we turn over the endless options for action we often become paralyzed by our own analysis. We don’t know which way to go or how to respond to the variety of issues directed at us. The fear of doing something wrong can immobilize us. At Life Strategies we will assist you to methodically identify solutions for long-term peace.

Depression
“Just Suck It Up And Go On!” can be the worst advice. If you suppress your feelings without resolving them, then you set yourself up for a lifestyle of depression. No matter what the conflict, the common and destructive denominator is that many remain unresolved. When we feel ashamed, guilty, depressed, anxious, or angry, it’s a sure sing that one or more of these conflicts remain unresolved. At Life Strategies we firmly believe that there are answers to life’s problems, but we can’t even look for them if we… “just suck it up and go on.”

About Hamlet Smith, LICSW, DCSW
Hamlet Smith comes to Life Strategies with over 13 years experience in adult, adolescent and children’s therapy. Hamlet completed his undergraduate at Appalachian Bible College. He says of that experience, “The education I received at ABC has been invaluable for building counseling theory on the truth of the Bible.” He received his Masters of Social Work from West Virginia University. Hamlet has a Diplopmate in Clinical Social Work and is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker licensed by the West Virginia Board of Social Work Examiners. He is also a member in good standing of the National Association of Social Workers.

Hamlet enjoys frequent speaking opportunities. His following seminars remain popular:

• Stress Busters, Turning Distress into Success!

• We Don’t Talk Anymore, Strengthening Family Relationships by Improving Communication

• Boundaries, Saying Yes or NO and Meaning it!

• Depression & Anxiety, Turning weakness into strength.

Hamlet has in the past worked as a mental health therapist in the Fayette County school system, as a therapist in Beckley Appalachian Regional Health Sciences Center and at New River Family Heath Center. He, his wife, and their children reside in Beckley, West Virginia.

About Josiah Smith MSW , LGSW
Josiah Smith received his Masters of Social Work from West Virginia University. He is a Licensed Graduate Social Worker by the West Virginia Board of Social Work Examiners. Josiah earned a B.A. from Appalachian Bible College. In his undergraduate days Josiah was a leader on and off campus. He served as captain of the Basketball team as well as the Soccer team, where he received All-American honors. “I’m truly thankful for the mentors that have shaped my life. I look at this job as an opportunity to give back.”

Josiah lived in South Africa for 6 years and has traveled extensively throughout the world. It’s his passion to one day be involved in world missions and international social work practice. He, his wife, and their son, reside in Beckley, West Virginia.