"Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless swamps of the approximate, the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish, in lonely frustration for the life you deserved, but have never been able to reach. Check your road and the nature of your battle.
The world you desired can be won. It exists, it is real, it is possible, it is yours."
Ayn Rand
"I dwell in possibility."
Emily Dickinsonn
"Challenge is the core and the mainspring of all human activity. If there's an ocean, we cross it; if there's a disease, we cure it; if there's a wrong, we right it; if there's a record, we break it; and finally, if there's a mountain, we climb it."
James Ramesy Ullman
"When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hang on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn."
Harriet Beecher Stowe
ABOUT DR. CALABRESE
I have great respect for life stories. I think that if we simply listened to each other tell our life story, uninterrupted by advice or criticism, we might learn that the human experience, the life story, is a shared experience. We might learn to care for ourselves and each other in new ways.
Wouldn't that be wonderful?
I would like to share a bit of my life story with each of you. Embedded in the story are the details, the credentials, that support my ability to work as a therapist. Those details are important, but they are not the whole story.
I love what I do. I marvel at the resilience, dignity, and strength of people who have endured terrible suffering, and it is my fervent hope that I will in some small way, support their healing journey.
I was born in Buffalo, New York, in 1947 to an Irish American WWII veteran, William, and Nancy, daughter of beloved Foster and Grace, survivors of the Great Depression. Life was full of hope and promise for young families in those days. They wanted nothing more than to leave the horror of war behind. They wanted to protect their children from the numbing grief and fear that had been their experience as children of survivors of the Great Depression, and Irish immigrants carrying the grief and rage of a people betrayed. It is not possible to protect children from the realities of life.
Life was not easy for my family. When I was four years old, and my brother Kevin was one, my father had an automobile accident that left him broken physically and emotionally. He was hospitalized for a year, and when he returned, he struggled for the rest of his life to control his alcoholism and drug addiction. Eventually, my grandparents Foster and Grace invited us to live with them, providing a safety net for our family. They chose to protect us and care for us, challenging as it must have been for them.
When I was sixteen, my beloved baby sister, Amy, was born, and I learned how much I enjoyed taking care of infants and children. Good thing since I'm now the grandmother to three beautiful children who call me Mimi!
I had the great good fortune to attend Bennett High School, a large urban high school filled with a diverse group of interesting teenagers, divided into the usual groups, but not against each other. I loved that school, and today, I consider my friends from high school my "heart tribe" --those who know, love, and respect me in an unconditional way.
I completed my BS degree in Special Education in 1969, graduating from D'Youville College in Buffalo New York. I was among the first group of education pioneers who believed that people with varying disabilities had great potential, and they had the right to participate in a "least restrictive" educational environment. I was married in 1968 to a high school sweetheart.
My former professor asked if I would join her on the faculty of D'Youville College, helping her to supervise those students completing their student teaching, in field requirements. At this same time, I also worked with families who wanted to learn more about helping their children and young adults, participating in a Grant funded project that was designed to help teachers and parents develop skills in behavior modification.
I earned my Master's degree in 1974 from State University College of New York at Buffalo. By this time, I had two beautiful daughters, my husband was building a business, and life was very, very busy.
As a young college teacher, I trained teachers, helped to write the first NYS Special Education Teacher Training curriculum, and became the Chairmen of the Special Education department at D'Youville college - yes, my alma mater! Then, my curiosity and innate drive to achieve, took over and I decided to pursue my doctorate. I earned my PhD in Counseling/Educational Psychology from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1985.
I remember the day a light bulb went on. Shortly before I completed my doctorate, I decided to become a family systems therapist. I left my teaching position and enrolled in a newly established Family Systems training program at the University of Rochester Medical School. After three years of training and supervision, I began a private practice in Williamsville, New York. Today I am a NYS Licensed Marriage and Family therapist.
It has been 25 years since I began working and now I live in a diverse Catskill Mountain community. My children are grown and married. My husband and I divorced after 27 years of marriage, and I moved to New York City, to begin life as a single professional woman.
I have worked as a consultant to the Buffalo Public School System, a NYC based, global financial institution, and the Center for Discovery, a most remarkable place dedicated to providing the highest quality residential care to people with disabilities. It has been a joy to design and conduct many creativity workshops, helping people to explore and express themselves through collage.
Throughout these past years, I have continued to learn and grow as a therapist, adding hypnotherapy and the LENS to my client offerings. I will continue to study, hone my skills and learn new ways to help people. After all, that is what each of you deserve.
Kathy@ConsultDrCalabrese.com
OFFICE 845.688.2645 CELL 646.707.5127
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