Welcome to my blog. I’m Stephen Shostek, a counseling therapist in Portland, OR blogging on matters related to life and living well.

I started my counseling practice in 1999, in the early days of the internet when “blog” wasn’t in the dictionary. Fifteen years later, “blog” is a well-worn word. Most businesses have one and even my teenage son has a blog. With so many blogs out there, I’m hoping to make mine relevant and useful enough that you’ll return for frequent reading or even subscribe.

I’m planning to blog about things I’m interested in related to counseling/therapy and in living well. Topics like what makes life full and rich; what creates well-being and “the good life.” I’m interested in relationships and the skills and attitudes that are helpful toward enjoying satisfying relationships. And I’m interested in the growth and maturing that facilities all of the above. I’m interested in the science that informs our growth and in practical skills that most people can put to use toward living well.

I also like to laugh and play so look for my sense of humor in my writing. I’d like my posts to go beyond contemplation and inward searching. I appreciate awe and the beauty of our world so you can expect to find photography with most posts.

I know that in order to hold your attention, my blog will have to be useful to you. I have a list of topics in mind for the coming year that include dealing with stress, brain health, effective living, awe and the mysterious, cultivating calm, having more fun, relationships, and parenting to name a few. I’m hoping my writing can help you to bring out your best so that you can live and be your best. And I’d love to hear from you about other topics that you want to hear about.

Which reminds me – I want to engage with you in my blog. I’m not looking for just a one-way broadcast of information – I’m hoping for the give-and-take of comments, additional info, feedback and even disagreements on my blog pages. So if you have something to add to my posts, please do. You can also find me in email if you like.

About the title, “Hello World!”: In my first career, I was a software engineer. I know, that’s quite a change, eh? Sometime back in the early 1980’s I wrote my first C language program from the book “C”  by  Kernighan and  Ritchie. The first program they suggested to try was:

#include <stdio.h>
Main()
{
printf(“Hello World!\n”);
}

Which displayed “Hello World!” on my screen.

It got me started with C, and it seems like a good start here as well. So, “Hello World” and please check back soon!

By Stephen Shostek, Portland Therapist
www.stephenshostek.com
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Email: Stephen@stephenshostek.com
(503)963-8600