About Us

HUMAN BEINGS GROW THROUGH INTERPERSONAL CONFLICT:
WHY CONFLICT CAN BE CREATIVE, NOT DESTRUCTIVE

We humans are in this life to learn;
we learn by interacting with each other;
we attach in order to survive first and learn second;
we fight in order to individualize and keep learning other lessons;
all experiences teach us something about us and our relationships;
our task is how to develop nurturing, learning experiences through which we can grow.

NORA’S STORY:

My path began in a very difficult childhood, where the fact that I was a gifted child presented a challenge to a family that put all their efforts in educating a male child, but saw investing in a girl’s education a waste of resources.

That is where my quest to understand began. I wanted to know:

Why do people do what they do?
What are the reasons for aggressive behavior?
Where does hate comes from?
Why do people reject each other? (What did I do to merit so much rejection?)
Is there a search for love under all the interpersonal attacks we do to each other?

I had my family to teach me how to survive under conditions of non-recognition and scarcity, which served me well when I needed to endure a traditional marriage where the wife was not supposed to think or push forward creative ideas or social critique, and managed to get a college education on clinical psychology while having five children.

The fourth child was born in the middle of exams session and I managed to take them all; and graduated later at the head of my class.

My path took me into the two institutions that really allow you to know a society in a deep level:

A mental health care ward, where I invested 11 years watching inmates and doctors at the same time, and still asking my questions. The Navy in a Latin American society, where I learned how power and resources are managed for the good of whoever grabs them.

After more than 20 years of working as a clinical psychologist, family therapist and counselor, I decided that my role was more useful at the level of systemic interventions – not at the level of suffering individuals (of which there was an endless supply…), but at the social level where rules and laws are made that determine unhappiness and opportunities for citizens. Getting a Ph.D. in Conflict Resolution led me to think in large, systemic ways – the ways in which we create wars and social conflict that leads to mass learning through shared suffering.

This was my life induction into the world of conflict. Confrontation is always a mystery for all of us because it forces people to challenge the same people they love most. There is always the chance of hurting others or being hurt ourselves, but nevertheless, we need to confront.

Conflicts are inevitable ways of interacting with others and pivotal parts of all relationships. Relationships are the tools by which people connect for reciprocal growth. It is through relationships that people either rise to the most creative possibilities, or fall into the immobilizing trap of fear and stop growing.

WHAT WE ARE ABOUT:

We are about understanding conflict’s role in personal growth;
We are supportive of people’s desire to stop suffering from hate and anger;
We are into re-framing confrontation as a call for understanding and support;
We are about providing solutions in a climate of uttermost respect and empathy.

WHAT WE ARE NOT ABOUT:

Taking sides in any confrontation;
Deciding who is right or who is wrong;
Adjudicating blame;
Rejecting people because their way of expressing pain is aggression.

WE OFFER A UNIQUE MIX OF:

Clinical psychology;
Conflict resolution;
Emotional processing work;
With life experiences as therapist;
As conflict solvers, trainers and conflict coaches.

The project of Creative Conflict Resolutions now is to find and offer you the tools which would transform any relationship from a damaged, unhappy state, into one of reciprocal appreciation and support.

There is only room for mutual help, understanding, and respect. You can learn to transform any relationship into acceptance, recognition and love. How can we learn from each other, how can we learn from you and you from us?