The goal of all of Two Rivers Mediation's (TRM) offerings is the same: to help you become successful and self-sufficient in the resolution of any conflict.

There are two factors which are likely to influence this:

1. How charged the topic is for one or both of you.
2. Your willingness to actually apply the tools when things get tough.

So we offer five types of services: Relationship Assessment, Workshops, On-going NVC classes, Weekend NVC Intensives and Mediation.

Our Couple's Relationship Stress Test, which is available online as well as by mail, can help you better understand the stressors which may be undermining the love and good will in your relationship before they reach the critical level. Most couples don't seek help until they are one step away from disolving the relationship. There's no reason to wait that long: "The fight you have which destroys the relationship isn't the first time you've have that fight, it's just the last"™ And in return for taking the 5 minute quiz, and then meeting with us for a free 1/2 hour relationship evaluation, we'll give you a gift certificate for $20, even if you end up not working with us!

Our workshops, which we call "How Couples can avoid Conflict: Learn 5 simple skills?" are usually a couple of hours long and are designed to give you an understanding about how conflict happens and what you can do about it. We teach a couple of mediation tools, and if you actually practice them in your life, about 50%-80% of your current difficult conversations can become "Constructive Conversations." Most of these classes are run through the Mt. Airy Learning Tree.

Our NVC Classes, which are going all year long teach Non-Violent Communication (NVC) at six different levels, from beginner to advanced. We also have classes for Parents and Teachers wanting to use NVC with the young people in their lives and Teen Talk - how to use NVC with your Parents and Friends. For information about these and other classes, see www.PhillyNVC.org.

Tough letters, meetings or phone calls can be made easier with a little Mediation Coaching. We'll go over that important letter you are having trouble with, coach you before an important meeting or interview, or guide you through a seven step negotiation preparation process which will help you not only understand and express your point of view, it will enable you to see and appreciate the other party's needs as well!

Mediation: Finally, in most people's lives, there are issues which arise from time to time which are so charged, we simply need help dealing with them. If these important issues are not dealt with skillfully, they fester and begin to eat away at the fiber of the relationship. In some couples, the argument may never actually be spoken about again, but it makes its presence felt by the decreased safety and intimacy that becomes the fabric of the relationship.

Our Low-Cost Group Mediation clinic happens once or twice a week which is especially useful if your partner isn't willing to participate, but you really feel the need for communication help.

By uncovering the unmet needs which are buried within the conflict, TRM's mediators can bring back the safety and connection that may have seemed lost forever, and at very reasonable cost.

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Our Ongoing Weekly Classes

Our on-going classes are aimed at helping you practice the skills we teach in our workshops and mediations. We also teach more advanced skills to handle situations which are more emotionally charged, or those with more weighty content.

In our tiered 6 week NVC class, for instance, after about six weeks of practice, people begin to report a change in the way they see the world: situations which seemed intractable (like those with their parents or teens), begin to seem like opportunities for understanding and connection.

For information about these and other classes, see www.PhillyNVC.org.

Our Couple's Relationship Stress Test, which is available online as well as by mail, can help you better understand the stressors which may be undermining the love and good will in your relationship before they reach the critical level.

Most couples don't seek help until they are one step away from disolving the relationship. There's no reason to wait that long:

"The fight you have which destroys the relationship isn't the first time you've have that fight, it's just the last"™

And in return for taking the 5 minute quiz, and then meeting with us for a free 1/2 hour relationship evaluation, we'll give you a gift certificate for $20, even if you end up not working with us!

(Note all communication with us is held in the strictest confidence, including your Stress Test results!)

"Recognizing my unmet needs behind my upsets has been profound in terms of my self understanding. I have more compassion for myself - " -S.F., M.ed.

New NVC Class hours
Every Monday Night: starting Jan 12, 2009
7:15-7:30pm Free Intro to NVC
7:30-9:30pm: NVC Practice Class

Join Our Weekly NVC Email List Email:   Get 1 email a week describing all the NVC activity in the greater Delaware Valley or Sign up for a list that only comes when we do a weekend event!

You can also learn more about NVC in Philadelphia at the www.PhillyNVC.org web site.

Everyone of any level is invited to join in on this fun, social practice group.

New to NVC or missed some classes? Come from 7:15-7:30 p.m. in our gracious Mt. Airy home (call or Click for directions), for our free, weekly Introduction to NVC. We'll introduce the basic concepts, and go over the concepts covered in recent classes. (You can also get the introduction online by watching our online video: Intro to NVC on your high-speed connection, or via dialup).

NVC Practice Class: Come from 7:30-9:30 pm in our Mt. Airy home (call or Click for directions), , and learn a new set of skills each week, and practice NVC doing exercises from the book, as well as reenactments from actual life events. What better way to learn and grow?

In each of our 6 week Foundations of NVC classes, we'll work our way through Marshall Rosenberg's "Non-Violent Communication" textbook. (See Marshall's website: www.cnvc.org or the CCI home page for more on NVC and "How much does it cost" for prices.) (For information about these and other classes, see www.PhillyNVC.org.)

Feel free to join at any time:

• 7:15-7:30 pm Intro Class continually reviews earlier lessons and is designed to have new people joining every week and is free. Even if you can't come every week.
• 7:30-9:30 pm NVC Practice Class is a great way to learn new skills, and practice using them in an ongoing way.

This revolutionary style of communicating will not only change the way your and your partner talk to each other, it will change the way you look at the world, and even how you treat yourself.

It takes about the first six weeks of practicing this new way of speaking before you'll begin to see how previously 'impossible' situations in which other people "make you feel" unhappy, start to change into opportunities for deep connection and heartfelt empathy.

Mediation clients of TRM, get a discount to our NVC classes, so you can continue learning even after we've helped you solve your hot-button issues (see"How much does it cost" for prices) .

Low-Cost Group Mediation Clinic [back to top]

Every Sunday Evening from 7-9pm
we have a Low Cost Group Mediation.

We've created the Mediation Group for people who either:

• Have a one-issue problem that they want help with, or
• Have an issue with another party who won't come to mediation with them, or
• Want to not just fix a conflict, but learn how to resolve it, or
• Couples who need Couples Mediation but can't afford the private sessions.
  

The first step is filling out the online Intake Form (see link below). This allows the mediator to read about your situation ahead of time, so we don't have to take group time. We'll divide the time up evenly between all the people who attend. Each person gets one-on-one time with the mediator, moving your understanding of your situation ahead. You'll be given work to do outside of group, on your own. Some people return for a few weeks in a row, solving their problem step-by-step, even if the other person doesn't attend the group.

Bring your real-life couples or personal conflicts, and we'll work together as a group, using NVC and Teamwork Mediation, to help you resolve them.

This will be an opportunity for couples who can't afford Couples Mediation or don't need a whole series of private sessions to receive help resolving issues too big for your current skills, but small enough to work out in a single, group session.

First Group will be January 11, 2009
You must fill out an online Intake Form (click here)
by 9pm the night before each class to attend this class.

This series of experiential workshops is designed for small to medium sized groups.

We'll explain the basic theory of mediation and non-violent communication and teach several practical skills which participants can use at home and on the job.

Two hour, half-day, weekend and lunch-time versions available.

Check our Schedule Of Events, or Contact us to schedule your own event.

Participants in our CC Workshops get discounts on Mediation and our ongoing NVC classes.

Mediation

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Couples Mediation

Two Rivers Mediation specializes in Couples Mediation. Applying this science of communication which was developed to help warring nations find peace, to couples who love each other but are having trouble communicating is an amazing and powerful way to solve recurring arguments once and for all.

Pre-Marriage/
Commitment Mediations

The argument a couple has which causes them to divorce is not the first time they've had that argument - it's just the last. The reason for most unhappiness in marriages is not understanding the differences which the two of you bring to the relationship. Pre-Marriage mediation not only helps both parties make informed decisions about who they are marrying, we'll teach you the skills needed to turn those differences into opportunities for ever deepening intimacy.

Phone Mediations

If parties are geographically distant, or have scheduling challenges, we offer mediations by phone. Surprisingly effective, we've had the same kinds of success with couples over the phone as we have in person.

Single-Party Mediation

There are three types of Single-Party Mediations available at TRM:

• Pre-Mediation Negotiation Preparation: Most people go into a negotiation either unprepared, or having worked on only one side of the issue - theirs! Professional negotiators focus their preparation on learning and understanding the other party's needs so you go in knowing what are the strengths and weaknesses of their position, and what you have that might be of value to them - so you know what you can offer in return for getting your needs met. We have a 7 step process for helping you identify the issues on both sides of a disagreement so you go into the negotiation fully prepared.
  
  
• Second Party Refusal: Even if the other party won't agree to mediate, we can help you shift your perspective from a them-vs.-us to a cooperative understanding of both parties needs and end up with a win-win solution.

• Empathy Sessions: Judgments and nearly all painful feelings we have about other people cover up some needs of ours which have gone unmet for too long. Knowing what those needs are, and how to communicate them so both parties feel excited about having a win-win solution is the goal of single-party empathy sessions.

(See "How Much Does It Cost" for pricing.)

Low-Cost Group Mediation

If your conflict isn't too involved, or cost is an issue, or if you're interested in learning while you other people mediate, our Low-Cost Group mediation may be just right for you.

Each party or couple has between 15-30 minutes, in a group setting, to take their issue to the next level. There usually isn't time to resolve issues, but we can help you get over a stuck place, and send you home with homework to try out your new learning. Then, you're welcome to come back, and work on the next step.

This has proved to be a practical and cost-efficient way for clients to work on their own problems with our help.

(See Low Cost Mediation above for details)

 

Parent-Teen Mediations

Our process is very effective with teenagers. They are often struggling with learning how to identify their own needs, and how to express them. They are also trying to learn how to meet their need for autonomy, and at the same time figuring out how to do relationships.

Teens respond very badly to judgments or demands, both kinds of statements which we teach parents and teens how to avoid.

Respect is also a huge issue for teens, who are frequently feeling disrespected when they are treated like children, even though they know they are not yet quite adults.

Our process starts with the assumption that everyone at the mediation table is equal, and deserves respect. This sets up the perfect environment for families to begin talking about issues which could even be addressed before.

And our emphasis on teaching skills not only assures a peaceful household while your teen is living with you, it offers them important skills which will go with them as they go out into the world.

Post-Divorce Couples Mediation

Although we don't do divorce mediaiton, because the focus of our practice is teaching couples communication skills, those skills come back into play after the divorce is final.

In fact, the negotiations become more complex with two households, new lovers and then step-parents, and kids who have to navigate these more complex situations and so need even clearer communication and more teamwork between their parents.

Group Facilitation

Besides being trained in classic mediation, Two Rivers Mediation can facilitate hard meetings, group processes, neighborhood disagreements, etc.

Contact us to schedule your own event.