Family and systemic psychotherapy – also known as family therapy – can help those in close relationships to better understand and support each other. Family life isn’t always easy…
Families can be very complicated because everyone is unique. Each person thinks and talks about things in a different way, and each person has different ideas, feelings, worries and strengths. All kinds of changes can make family life more stressful, such as an illness, unemployment, moving home, new family members, getting older, divorce, death and trauma. Some families find their own ways to manage these changes, and some families find it much harder, for all kinds of reasons.
Family Therapy enables family members to express and explore difficult thoughts and emotions safely, understand each other’s experiences and views, appreciate each other’s needs, build on family strengths, and work together to make useful changes in their relationships and their lives.
Family therapy can help families at all stages of life when they’re feeling overwhelmed, sad and angry; when they’re not sure what to do for the best; or when they feel stuck in repeating patterns of hurtful or harmful behaviour.
I will adapt my ways of working according to people’s ages, needs, resources and preferences. Some people may wish to talk together from the start of therapy sessions, while others may prefer some individual time with their Family Therapist before deciding if, what and how to share their thoughts and feelings with others. I’ll discuss with you how you would like to work together.
Some Techniques and approaches for young children
A variety of different approaches are used to suit the needs of the individual depending on their age, ability and learning needs.
Talk. Talking is a healthy way to express feelings but it is not the most appropriate for some individuals.
Playing and drawing. I may use games that teach specific things which relate to the issue that you may be facing. Drawing can teach about feelings.
Activities. I might teach lessons about feelings, coping skills, or facing fears. Activities help make these lessons more fun.
Practice new skills. I might teach you skills like mindfulness and calm breathing. These take practice. I can help you practice what you're learning.
Solve problems. I might ask about how problems affect you in your environment such as work, university, college and at school. I might talk with you about how to solve these problems.
I will adopt the particular approach which most closely fits with your Individual Needs.
