Most people, if not everyone, have a family of their own. Whether that family includes blood relatives, or adopted parents and a close-knit neighborhood, there is a bond between one and another.
A family usually affects what someone is in their daily lives and has some influence over what they choose to be in their adult lives. So, to continue living a great life with your family members, one sometimes needs the assistance of family therapy.
What is family therapy?
Family therapy, also known as family counseling, is a special form of treatment that is developed to address some special issues affecting the proper health and functioning of any family.
It can be implemented to help a family through a traumatic or difficult period or mental and behavioral health problems in one or some family members.
Family therapy can easily employ some special techniques and exercises from behavior therapy, cognitive therapy, interpersonal therapy, and some other types of individual therapy.
What are the common types or techniques of family therapy?
According to some clinical studies and theories, some very common types of family therapies are:
- Structural therapy: Structural therapy mainly focuses on both adjusting and strengthening the entire family system to make sure that the parents are in control and that both the adults and children in the family can set appropriate boundaries.
In this type of therapy, the therapist tries to properly observe, learn, and also enhance their chances to help the family strengthen their relationships.
- Bowenian therapy: This therapy known as the Bowenian therapy is a special form of family therapy that is perfect for those situations in which a person does not or cannot want to involve his/her other family members in the entire treatment procedure. Bowenian therapy is actually built on two core concepts, that are: triangulation and differentiation.
- Strategic therapy: This form of family therapy is much more brief and direct than the other ones, in which the therapist gives some homework to the family.
This homework is given in order to change the way the members of the family interact by adjusting the way they communicate and make some crucial decisions. The therapy helps the family members to communicate more effectively.
- Systemic therapy: This is another type of family therapy. The systemic model mainly refers to the specific type of therapy that actually focuses on the unconscious meanings behind the behaviors of the family members.
The therapist in this type of treatment remains neutral and distant, giving the family members the opportunity to dive deeper into their own issues and concerns as a family.
What are the advantages of family therapy?
Improving communication
When a member of a family is struggling with mental health problems, they usually have a hard time getting along with the other members of the family. Through family therapy, therapists help them to resolve their family conflicts and encourage them to express their support for one another.
Improving relationships
This is the primary goal of family therapy. An expert therapist will not only help a patient in resolving mental problems but also increase the understanding between family members. In this way, they can easily improve family relationships to a great extent.
Helps in finding solutions for various problems
A family therapist will also offer the members of a family ways to deal with their personal problems on their own. This way, they can live happily within their family.
Thus, family therapy is really important to help a person who is facing some mental health problems and having conflicts with the other members of the family.
