This answer often looks different to each family that starts family therapy. However, some signs that your family might need to consider family counseling include frequent fights or misunderstandings, constant tension, experiencing loss, behavioral issues, marital issues, divorce, and blended family issues, among others.
The Proud Family, the Huxtables, the Tanners, the Bradys, the Flintstones. Did you follow the lives of any of these families? All of these families are from well-known TV shows centered around their family dynamic that many aspired to achieve. And even though these families are most known for their entertaining lives, they too experienced hardships and struggles as a unit. No family is perfect—each and every one experiences something that shakes their foundation. What’s important, however, is not letting your foundation break.
Family is a powerful cultural value for many people no matter the size—whether their family consists of 5, 15, or 50 people. As humans, we long for a loving relationship with those we care about. When families thrive, each member of that family is affected in a positive way. Two things are true for all families: 1) Every family will experience change or adversity, and 2) How it responds to change and adversity will determine its ability to maintain healthy, lasting bonds. Here at Thriveworks McLean in Fairfax, our therapists and psychologists can help your family manage adversity to create a long-lasting healthy family dynamic.
What Might Necessitate Family Therapy?
Most families you know probably seem to be doing alright. In actuality, every family will endure a hardship, and these hard times can either make or break a family.
Crises can change life in an instant, that’s reality. And sometimes a hard dose of reality can be scary. When unforeseen events happen to one family member, it shakes the entire family. When crises blindside a family, a therapist can work to help mend their brokenness. Unexpected disruptions can include:
- A family member’s death
- An accident that results in a disability or injury
- Losing the family’s home
- A financial disruption
- Job loss
These are all unforeseen events. Some families, however, have problems that start out as minor and manageable. But when left unaddressed, they can turn into challenges that are hard to overcome. Examples of these challenges can be:
- Resolving marital conflict
- Caring for a physically ill or special-needs family member
- Addressing mental illness
- Working through parenting challenges
The list could go on and on. When small obstacles start to arise, it’s important to take care of them before they build upon one another until the small obstacles turn into a mountain to climb.
How Can Family Therapy Help?
Issues that arise within a family can be hard to overcome. If you get to a point where you feel like no progress can be made, reach out for help. Family therapy can be just what your family needs to start on a path towards mending things that are broken and growing together. Sometimes communication is lacking, or maybe your family doesn’t know where things went wrong—that’s where a clinician at Thriveworks McLean in Fairfax can come in and help. A skilled therapist or psychologist may be able to…
- Facilitate healthy communication.
- Equip each family member to articulate their needs.
- Guide each member on how to support others in the family.
- Use integrated and calming techniques to resolve differences or tension between individual family members.
A family therapist can help get to the root of your family’s problem(s). They can then look at the bigger picture before proposing workable solutions.
Thriveworks McLean Is Here to Help
Is your family’s foundation starting to crack? Let us help your family fill the cracks before the foundation breaks completely. Family is important to so many people, and at Thriveworks McLean, we want to help shape families into strong units. Let’s work together to open communication lines, resolve conflicts, and help families grow together.
At Thriveworks McLean, we have a “no waiting list” policy—new clients can even have an appointment within 24 hours. We want to help whoever we can, that’s why we partner with many different insurance plans, and we offer flexible hours for those people who can’t make an appointment during “normal” business hours.
Our clinicians are ready to help your family with whatever it is that is challenging you – whether you know exactly what it is or not. They have the tools to help you and your family thrive. Call Thriveworks McLean in Fairfax today to set up your first appointment at (571) 589-4042.
