Family Therapy

Family therapy is based on the belief that the family is a unique social system with its own structure and patterns of communication.  A family’s pattern is shaped by many things including the parents’ beliefs and values, the personalities of all the family members and influenced by extended family and social settings.  As a result of these variables, each family develops its own unique personality, which powerfully affects all of its members.

Any change in one member of the family affects both the family structure of each member individually. I teach family members how families function and how their own functions. By helping to identify conflicts and developing strategies to resolve them, family therapy strengthens all family members so they can work on the issues together.  Families often get caught up in “we’ve tried that and it doesn’t work” and I’ve found that nothing will work unless each family member takes responsibility for their part in making it work.