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Dr. Tarra Bates-Duford

Dr. Tarra Bates-Duford has extensive experience as a separation and divorce mediator. She also has had many years of experience as a therapist working with couples and families. She has earned the designation as a Certified Relationship Specialist with Diplomate Status (advanced standing). Her experience and extensive research on relationships have earned her recognition as a relationship expert with the American Psychotherapy Association.

She is a Forensic Psychologist specializing in familial dysfunctions, a Marriage, Couples & Family Therapist, and a Certified Relationship Expert (APA #15221). I am CEO and Founder of Family Matters Counseling Group LLC in Orlando, FL. She has over 20 years of experience working with couples and families dealing with issues of divorce, mental health, and relationships.

Blog posts created by this author

7 Tips for Spending the Summer Without Your Kids

For divorcing couples, summer vacation isn’t a walk in the park. If you’ll be spending the summer without your kids, you can ease the transition by using some of the following 7 tips.

15 Tips to Promote Healthy Stepparenting

Many of us have seen stepfamilies and blended families on both the big and small screen, most being depicted as a seamless transition from one family type to another. However, with most significant life changes, transition and adjustment is rarely easy, or quick. I am sure we all remember television shows like the Brady Bunch, […]

Dating After Divorce: 14 Helpful Tips to Live By

The process of divorce is one of the most difficult things someone can experience during the course of one’s lifetime. Divorce is a very confusing time in the life of a family as well as those that love them. For many of us when we hear that a couple is divorcing, several thoughts flood our […]

13 Reasons People Are Unfaithful in a Marriage

Many people enter a marriage with the hopes and dreams of being together forever. However, infidelity in a marriage is more common than most of us care to admit. Infidelity is characterized as a partner or partners breaking a promise to remain faithful during a committed relationship or a marriage. A promise to remain faithful […]

16 Signs You’re Married to a Narcissist

Are you married to a narcissist? For those in a relationship with a narcissistic person, the pressure to live up to his or her “standards” and demands can be intense. Here’s what you need to know.

7 Tips for Healthy Co-Parenting with a Toxic Ex

Most of us are aware of the challenges that go along with the breakdown of the family when partners divorce. Once a couple decides to divorce, many issues and questions arise that had never been previously contemplated by the couple, such as who gets custody of the children, how to divide the marital property, finances, […]