Notes from the Counselor on Building Bridges

Notes from the counselor on Building Bridges 

Dr. Muriel Redman McKenney on Building Bridges

Dr McKenney had many of the attributes that a great communicator needs. She was shackled for much of her own life with a lack of confidence when it came to family.

One area of her own personal research was to find ways that she might use to improve the communications within and between herself and her mother and brothers. 

She was able to build bridges within her family; though the bridges were always tenuous and unpredictable. She gave a lot of effort to study in this area and for many who she counseled there was a great payoff. 

Beyond her immediate family she easily built bridges with strong relationships to members of the community that surrounded her. 


These are the notes of Dr. Muriel R. McKenney, The Counselor, on Building Bridges: 

Most of the time, we pay little attention to the way we talk to each other. We become accustomed to each person's style. And, although we may not be conscious of it, we tend to identify individuals by the manner in which they communicate. 

It is the most revealing expression of their personality. Virginia Satir, a pioneer in family therapy, became aware of the importance of communication and the effect that it has on our lives. She claimed that communication is the largest single factor determining what kinds of relationships individuals make with others and, ultimately, what happens to them in their worlds. 

All of us communicate in a similar fashion. We use our bodies to express ourselves through body language; our values to express our beliefs, that is, our “shoulds” and “should nots.” We use our expectations which are based upon our beliefs, and we also use our senses, our ability to talk, and our knowledge. 

Whenever we talk; our whole body talks by using a variety of words, facial expressions, body positions, muscle tones, breathing tempo, and voice tone. As the song goes, “every little movement has a meaning of its own.”