What to Expect — True Connection

I use my training as a licensed mental health therapist and cutting edge research in neurobiology, attachment theory, social learning theory, developmental psychology and child development to support families to find the joy in parenting again.

Parent coaching is as it sounds, a way for parents to gain the knowledge and support to meet your parenting goals.

Working with Ariel

Parenting is a deeply intuitive and emotional process and needs the care, consideration and support that all other major life activities require. Sometimes we need advice, sometimes we need someone to bounce ideas off of, sometimes we need to unpack our own issues from our childhood, sometimes we need support and guidance and sometimes we need a cheerleader. Ariel’s practice creates space for all of this. More than anything, True Connection helps reestablish the bonds of love, joy and affection that you would like more of in your parenting experience. There are lots of ways to parent and finding the right balance for you and your child is the ultimate goal of our work together.

Relationship

All support must be grounded in a positive relationship. This is especially true when we are talking about the sensitive and personal area of parenting. Ariel aims to create a safe, supportive, inclusive and non-judgemental environment for her coaching clients, to explore all the challenging areas of parenting and family life.

Education

A fundamental aspect to True Connection Parent Coaching is the grounding in current research and understanding of neurobiology and positive relationships. Ariel will help struggling parents learn all about who they are as a parent. Through a series of analytical assessments we can see objectively what areas to work on together and what areas to work on. It is through this highly individualized process that together we can create the structures and routines to suit the needs of each family. Ariel’s work with clients will include homework, readings and practice.

Style and Approach

Warmth, safety and acceptance are the pillars on which True Connection Parent Coaching are built. Ariel believes there are three main areas that are necessary to help parents grow so they can meet their children exactly where they are. She creates a warm and friendly space for parents to explore the challenging aspects of raising children. Every feeling is welcome in the work Ariel does with clients. This openness to the darker aspects of our own lives creates a feeling of safety to explore difficult topics and acceptance around whatever arises.

Ariel was the best advocate for my son that a parent could hope for.

Ariel went to bat for us in a couple of uncomfortable situations and continues to check in periodically to see how we are doing. She connected with my child and our family in a way that made it very apparent that was genuinely invested in helping my child flourish emotionally, while also holding him accountable.

— Matt and Sara

Ariel was the best advocate for my son that a parent could hope for.

We couldn’t have done it without her guidance!

Ariel has provided support for my family when we were facing challenges. My daughter had a hard time adjusting to a new school. Ariel invited my daughter to group therapy, and that is where she felt safe to connect with her peers. I have also reached out to Ariel with questions and concerns for how to work with my own students, and she is always generous with suggestions. Both of my children have learned techniques from mindfulness training with Ariel and they practice these skills with their friends and family. It has been a great pleasure working with Ariel for the last three years.

— Lauren

She's an amazing listener and support for families in need of professional direction and development.

We love working with Ariel. We appreciate her easy-going, kind demeanor and thoughtful counsel. Best of all, as a parent, she's been on the front lines herself, absorbing the personal challenges, bewilderment and exhilarations of family dynamics large and small. Imagine being able to engage with someone who speaks her truth from an educated point of reference -- all dashed with a sense of humor. That's her!

— M&S, Portland parents

She's an amazing listener and support for families in need of professional direction and development.

Ariel is someone I trust to provide care and counsel from a place of love and respect.

Ariel is a kind and compassionate mother, counselor and person. We have discussed collaborative problem solving, positive discipline, digital citizenship and how to discuss sex and sexuality with your children. She provides mindful lessons for the kids and it makes a huge difference with how they navigate difficult situations in and out of school.

— Angel Stech

Ariel is someone I trust to provide care and counsel from a place of love and respect.

She helped us navigate some of the most disheartening and frustrating situations concerning our children at school.

Ariel was an enormous help to our family during our grade school years. She encouraged me in how to best advocate for them and was a calming voice that took the time to see our kids as whole people who were in process and not as bad kids for their struggling.

— Tammy Comer

She helped us navigate some of the most disheartening and frustrating situations concerning our children at school.

Our family needed support and Ariel offered an abundance of guidance to navigate the complexities of the education and healthcare systems.

Parenting a young child who has unique needs--what our family refers to as “super powers”--can be overwhelming. Ariel’s deep compassion was felt by the entire family and her expertise gave us a path forward to find tools and resources we desperately needed, including a referral to an incredible pediatrician. We are truly grateful for Ariel’s empathetic listening and non-judgmental approach to helping our child get the educational and health services she needed to thrive.

— Charity

Our family needed support and Ariel offered an abundance of guidance to navigate the complexities of the education and healthcare systems.

Thank you again for supporting me in such an important phase of my life as a mother and as a person.

Ariel is incredibly knowledgeable about parenting and counseling. Every time that I have come to her with a question or concern she patiently listens and responds with insightful, caring, nonjudgmental and precise information that helps me better care for my children and makes me feel comfortable about my parenting choices. I appreciate her ability to understand from personal and professional experiences with children how hard raising someone can be and that all of us need some help at times. I highly recommend meeting with Ariel if you are looking for support that shows real results during your parenting journey!

— Laís Marques da Cruz

Thank you again for supporting me in such an important phase of my life as a mother and as a person.

I highly recommend Ariel Frager, and am forever grateful for the years of support that she gave to our family.

I am a single parent with three kiddos who have worked their way through elementary school, middle school and now the oldest is in high school. During the years of these transitions our family experienced many challenges related to poverty, mental health of a parent and the loss of a parent. Ariel connected with our family early in our journey, and continued to connect with us over the school years so that we could focus on issues as they arose. Ariel developed strong relationships with my children, supporting their emotional development with compassion, and strengths based approaches. Ariel's support helped to preserve my sense of dignity as a parent. I have appreciated her consistency, always being there and reaching out.

— Peter Irving

I highly recommend Ariel Frager, and am forever grateful for the years of support that she gave to our family.