Karen Kristjanson, MA, PCC - Expert

B. A. M.Sc. in Social Psychology M.A. in Applied Behavioural Science

I am an author, life coach and co-parent. Helping people make changes that will lead them to their desired life gives me profound satisfaction. Working as an educator, manager, school psychologist and counselor honed my awareness of how important and difficult change is for us all. Then my own divorce and challenge of co-parenting my sons showed me the vital importance of parenting, especially after divorce.

My growth

Divorce and rebuilding my life acted as a crucible for me. Choosing to share the parenting of my sons with their father turned out to be a good decision for my sons, and I am glad we chose this path. It wasn’t easy. I found it lonely and struggled to work with the boys’ father, especially at first, in the midst of intense feelings. It’s hard to make good decisions when emotions are churning. These events demanded so much of me that I grew in confidence and compassion, taking ownership of my life in a new way.

I value many kinds of education. In formal schooling, mostly my brain was tested and used. My heart – part of what parenting engages and requires every day – opened and expanded through my life transitions. I came to understand the importance of mind, heart, body and spirit together as crucial to growth.

My book

To support other co-parents, I wrote Co-Parenting from the Inside Out: Voices of Moms and Dads, published in 2017 by Dundurn Press. It captures stories of parents I interviewed from across North America in a wide range of circumstances. Co-operative parents, those in high-conflict battles, parents across the spectrum of sexual orientation, those with little money and those with plenty, parents with special needs, children with special needs, alienated parents – they are all there. From each set of stories I drew observations, patterns and themes. The last chapter contains twelve lessons learned from the stories, to provide context and encouragement to readers.

My coaching

Ten years ago, I became a certified Integral Master Coach®, building on all my previous work with individuals learning and changing. Coaching again invited me to grow and has deepened my ability to comprehend who each client is, support them and challenge them in order to expand their capacities.

I began my practice, Beyond Limits Coaching, serving clients by phone, skype and in person. Working with individuals in transition is my favorite thing, as most of us become more open to learning new skills and perspectives when our old ones have stopped working so well. Co-parents’ transitions in becoming the person they want to be in their post-divorce life, is particularly close to my heart.

Hard things happen to us all. As many wise people observe, it is our response to those painful events that offer us a way forward. I would never have the strength to choose illness, divorce, or the many gruelling circumstances that are part of life. Yet the silver lining of those events can be rich and transformative. The rewards of growth are tremendous!