Mom + Dad + 2.5 Children + Picket Fence = Family.

Maybe once upon a time (although probably not even then!), but real families are as individual and diverse as the people in them. And the challenges that each family group faces are very personal and require personalized approaches to understand and address their particular needs.

Whether your “family” is a “traditional” one, a single parent with children, separating, divorcing, or blending, same sex parents, grandparents raising grandchildren, or some other arrangement, you will occasionally have issues to handle – whether regarding parenting/co-parenting/step-parenting, establishing expectations and consequences, welcoming a new baby, navigating your child’s developmental stages, even dealing with your child growing up and impacting your identity as a parent.

Family issues do not arise only while raising children. Sometimes it’s not until we have grown up and left home that we realize the impact that our families of origin have had on us. Our early relationships can affect how we enter committed adult relationships and how we repeat or alter familiar patterns of behavior. Every now and then our families of origin continue to exert influence on us despite our attempts to establish and maintain healthy adult boundaries.

When these and other concerns interfere with being happy or successful in other areas of your life, it might be time to work with a licensed psychotherapist who can help you understand your family, the role you play in it, and how to replace negative cycles with more healthy, productive interactions. This process might involve your meeting individually to gain more awareness and understanding, and it could mean that any combination of parents and/or children would participate in the counseling sessions to explore more effective communication and behaviors.

Family systems are complicated organizations that are rich in their individuality. That means that a variety of theoretical approaches and helping strategies will be necessary to understand each family’s particular challenges and style. Your family group can be supported by addressing how you think, feel, act, react, and communicate at all different stages of your family’s development. By inviting a licensed professional to join with you or your family, you can be empowered to embrace the changes that could transform the people you’re related to into a “happy family.”

If you are ready to change your “family problems” into something that allows you to pursue your personal and family goals to make the most of your future, please reach out to me via email or phone 770.883.9728 to arrange your first appointment.

“In every conceivable manner, the family is link to our past, bridge to our future.”

-Alex Haley