FAMILY COUNSELLING
Families are the relationships with which we start our lives. Our families have a significant impact on our lives, both for better or worse. A significant amount of our life is spent with our families, and their behaviours and thoughts can alter our outlook at life. Problems within families impact not only one person but the group as a whole. That’s why we have family counselling to heal problems that can come up, so we can live fulfilling lives with our families.
What is Family Therapy?
Family therapy is a type of therapy that includes all or most members of a family for therapy sessions. It helps family members communicate, resolve any conflicts that arise and heals the effect that it has on the family's overall mental health and well being. The goals of what a family wants to achieve with their therapy may differ from family to family, and your therapist will help you achieve those goals.
It is a way for family members to express their emotions and views about specific issues within a family. A marriage and family therapist observes the problems and helps them resolve their conflicts with different approaches. It supports both children and family members to gain insight into each other’s problems and come up with a mutual agreement that benefits both sides.
How to decide if you need family counselling?
If you see such issues or other forms of conflict developing within a family, you should consider sorting things out to avoid further complications. But if it’s difficult for family members to resolve these issues on their own, then contacting a family therapist might be a better idea for the well-being of the whole family.
These are a list of symptoms that could indicate you need a therapist’s help:
Family members have extreme emotional reactions
Members feel distant, and there’s not effective communication within the family
Members want to withdraw from their family
Family members do not function well together
Difficulty between siblings
Family members show feelings of hopelessness with each other
Children’s behaviour is different at home or school
Some or all members have a substance abuse problem
Family members tend to be violent and fight too much
How does family therapy work?
First and foremost, the therapist talks with all members of the family to understand what’s causing the conflict. Then he/she will proceed to note different viewpoints of each member about the problem. Asking questions such as how the trouble started and how everyone has been coping with the problem so far. The therapist then advises a treatment plan that’s going to help all the members of a family.
The therapist teaches different skills to manage problems as a family and how they can avoid such problems in the future. This gives the family a new approach and an acceptable way to sort their problems out. These sessions usually last for 12 weeks, depending on different families.
A family therapy session could benefit the family in the following ways:
Enhanced communication between family members
Understanding each other’s point of view
Help family members forgive one another
Reduce tension, stress, and conflict in the family
Creating trust between parents and children
Getting everyone’s position across the table, so no one feels left out
Give family new approaches to solve a problem
Help family members learn their strengths and weaknesses
Understand the part each member needs to play for family’s unity
Develop a supportive and empathic family environment
Conclusion:
Family therapy will help your family members understand each other better and will provide you with techniques and skills you can use to cope with stressful situations. This helps bring the family together and helps interactively solve problems so everyone can together live a more fulfilling life. Svetlana and Sumbul have an extensive experience working with families and would be a good fi!
For more information on Family counselling feel free to give Vaughan Counselling and Psychotherapy a call 647-267-9853.