It took me a long time to realize that I was meant to be a family conflict and divorce mediator, and divorce coach.

I worked with difficult kids who were faced with tremendous obstacles and dealt a poor hand in the game of life. I loved helping these kids find the best in themselves and learned that I was great at de-escalating kids and helping them problem solve. I went to graduate school for social work in 1999 and upon graduation I sought and secured a job as a Program Director of a residential treatment program and special education school for adolescent girls.

It is here that I truly cut my teeth and learned to navigate exceptionally stressful and conflict-ridden circumstances. There was much that I loved about the work, not the least of which was helping a motley group of people with very different interests come to consensus to meet the best interest of the student and her family.

I had long been intrigued by the mediation and family law profession. The more I considered learning about mediation the more I realized that I was already working as a de facto mediator. Finally, after several years working as an Adjustment Counselor at a local high school, a mediator friend encouraged and persuaded me to attend an introductory 40 hour class.

It was love at first sight.

The moment I entered the class I knew mediation and conflict resolution for families was for me. The principles of mediation mirror my social work values, particularly the concept of self-determination. What appeared challenging for classmates was intuitive for me. And I really enjoyed it!

I now provide mediation services and collaborative coaching to families from all walks of life, including divorce, co-parenting, marital challenges, adult family conflicts, and parent-teen problems.

I also serve as a divorce coach in collaborative law cases, which is what brought you to this site!

I am a preferred provider of parent mediation for parents who participated in the state’s only High Conflict Parent Education Program (as well as one of the program instructors).

I also write a blog to help people learn how to improve communication and resolve conflict. Most of my posts are inspired by my professional and personal experiences from the conference room, classroom, and family room. I take pride in writing in an engaging style that is entertaining and useful to you, the reader.

I teach parent education classes for parents seeking a divorce, and present at conferences from time to time.

In addition, I work part-time for MGH’s Think:Kids program, helping parents and professionals work more effectively with children with challenging behavior through the Collaborative Problem Solving™ model. I am the Director of Certification at Think:Kids, which is a division of MGH’s Department of Psychiatry.

Please note that my name is spelled Ben Stich, not Ben Stitch (a common oversight that makes it difficult to find me online).