Family Therapy Program

Is your family unhappy together, not looking forward to family vacations?

Do you have a family member who refuses to get help for a serious emotional problem or substance abuse?

Is a member of your family facing a life-threatening illness, or has someone died in your family?

Family counseling can help.

Generally family therapy should lead to profound changes or new understandings within the first or second session. Family therapy can produce important changes very quickly. It is often much more powerful than other types of therapy. Research in counseling and psychotherapy has shown that the three most important ingredients to effective therapy are warmth, empathy and honesty. If a family can develop these attributes, the potential for healing and happiness are practically unlimited.

Sometimes when a family member has a serious problem, but refuses to seek out help on their own, family therapy is the only option. Fortunately it is a good option. It is quite typical for a family member with a drug problem, eating disorder or some other behavior issue to gain insight after family counseling and want to work on their problems. Our approach in these situations is to help the family make every interaction a reflection of their love for the troubled family member. The love of a family can be very powerful when directed along the right channels.

Family therapy is often essential when children are having problems. In fact, it is considered so important that our State Certification as a Mental Health center requires that we involve the family as soon as possible in any treatment. It can also be crucial to helping a relationship as well. We have seen many instances of a married couple having had counseling, but it was not until they saw a therapist who specializes in seeing the entire family that they were able to finally resolve their problems.

Family counseling is often crucial in life-altering events. Helping families find the strength to go on and even thrive in adverse environments is one of our specialties. These situations can include the death or serious illness of a family member, blending of two families in a step-family or re-building trust after an affair.

Because family counseling is not as readily available as other kinds of therapy, families are often surprised and very pleased with what can happen in this type of therapy. Because there are more people, and because so much happens in family therapy, family counseling sessions are longer than individual sessions; they often last twice as long.

Getting the whole family to counseling at one time can seem like a daunting task. The effects can be remarkable, however, so most families that make the commitment to family therapy find it well worthwhile.

At A Better Way Counseling Center, we have counselors who are experts in family counseling which means that is almost all they do.

Our family therapists work mostly in the afternoon until late evening and make some Saturday appointments as well to accommodate family members' schedules.

Please call (503) 226-9061 or email us if you'd like more information about our programs or how we can help. You can also click here to request our free "Steps to Family Peace and Healing" pamphlet.