DC and MD Matrimonial Lawyer Focusing on Custody, Divorce and Prenups
For over 20 years, Regina A. DeMeo has been helping families in MD and DC with custody and divorce issues either through mediation, litigation or advocacy. She is an alumna of Georgetown University and GW University Law School, who is nationally recognized as a top matrimonial attorney. She is frequently quoted in the media for her ideas to promote healthier relationships and featured in the Washington Post, ABA Journal and Bethesda Magazine for her care and commitment to her clients. As a legal commentator, she has appeared on Washington Post Express Facebook Live, ABC tv, Good Morning America, MMCTV, YouTube and Sirius XM, and has been quoted in various magazines, books and journals across the country.
Regina offers appointments in Maryland and DC. Her areas of practice include:
Latest Blog Posts by GenXSmartie
Are You Thinking of Getting Engaged?
The holiday season is a popular time for people to pop the question. And soon thereafter, engaged couples will begin to plan for the big day-- finding the right venue, deciding on the perfect menu, developing the guest list, and selecting all the necessary vendors for the special day, all of which will cost an average of $25,000 per wedding, and in the DC Area yields about $1.1 Billion a year in business. Needless to say, this is an intense endeavor with significant demands on your time and finances, so before you take that big step try to take a step back, and just ask yourself these 4 key questions: 1. What are the reasons you want to get married? The motivating factor should not be because you are tired of the dating scene or feel external pressure either as a result of a biological clock ticking, finances, or having a visa that is about to expire. It is also not healthy to want to play the role of a savior-- although we all want to help those we love, it grows old when one person constantly needs to be rescued by the other. Furthermore, applying the sunken cost logic, i.e. we have invested too much time or money into this relationship to call it quits is very faulty [...]
Is Heartbreak In the Air?
Have you noticed a surge in break-ups recently? Well, you are definitely not alone. As we adjust to the cold weather season, knowing that the holidays are around the corner, many men see this as time to "hibernate and cuddle," but unfortunately what many don't realize is that for women (who tend to plan much further ahead) this is the time to end something that isn't going anywhere. Why? Easy-- because 1) there is no point in trying to get through the holidays with someone you are no longer in love with, and 2) the sooner you stop going down a dead-end street, the sooner you can go find a more promising path-- maybe even before New Year's Eve if the stars align just right. This my friends is one of the best examples of how women and men think differently. Year after year, I have heard so many of my male clients say they would have just continued with the status quo. As long as work is good and home life is comfy, 9 out of 10 guys will just let things lie. But women, hmm ...we really are an entirely different breed. We let our minds (and often our emotions) race ahead, and as we check in with our girlfriends we wonder out loud, "what's the plan for [...]
How Flexible Is Your Thinking?
This week, I am looking forward to presenting at the annual conference for the Academy of Professional Family Mediators on the topic of Flexible Thinking. Obviously the majority of those in the audience, given their chosen profession, probably already have a proven ability to think flexibly, but the challenge for us is still this: how do you teach others to be flexible thinkers? Flexible thinkers have a demonstrated ability to see problems from various points of view, and they don't see conflict as a failure, but rather a challenge that requires some creativity in order to find a solution. If you are a flexible thinker, you don't see things as black or white. It's not your way or the highway. You are open to possibilities. You listen with genuine interest. You collaborate well with others and enjoy brainstorming. You share ideas readily, and appreciate feedback. You draw others into your world with diverse backgrounds and expertise. And as you pull all of these things together, you see magic happen. Truly, if you have experienced this you know what I mean. Now, if none of what I just said resonates with you does that mean it is game over? No, not at all. It does mean you will need a guide, and there's a lot of work ahead for you. But [...]
What Is Your Window of Opportunity?
In the medical world, they say every minute counts when it comes to restoring blood flow to stroke patients. It is believed that the maximum amount of time to start administering blood clot dissolving treatment once symptoms of a stroke start is 4.5 hours. The more time you lose, the greater the chances of causing irreparable damage to a person's brain. May I suggest that the same is true when you have a blow-up with your significant other. Time is simply not on your side when it comes to repair work. While we all need time to cool off after an upsetting situation, research suggests that within 20 minutes you should be able to calm down. During that time, take a walk, a soothing shower, perhaps sit still in a quiet room and take several deep breaths. Collect yourself and your thoughts. Start to think with your frontal lobe, not the emotional side of your brain, and then do something. Try to think of at least one thing you can do to repair the situation at hand. Remaining immobile should not be an option. Why? Because each minute that goes by without taking action is just depriving your heart of the love it needs. Simply stated you could act quickly to make the wound nothing more than a minor paper [...]