Family Therapy

Sometimes, entire families attend therapy together. As with couple therapy, there are no “good guys” or “bad guys” in families. When a family attends therapy together, our first task is to neutralize blame that may have settled on one person so that open conversation can begin.  From there, we work on skills such as “I” Messages, Reflective Listening, and creation of a Family Diagram so that we can pinpoint specifically, what problems are occurring, how they developed in the first place, and what keeps them happening.  We then talk about ways in which change might occur and ideas for how to bring this about.  No matter who is present in the session, Robin focuses on helping all involved find an effective balance between individual growth and connected togetherness as family members bring forth their concerns.

At times, Family Therapy involves a single individual interested in working on the development of “self” both within the context of the family and in other areas of their life.  People often attend therapy alone as they seek to better understand themselves and their relationships with others. Exploring one’s own patterns of interaction and communication that have developed within our families of origin can lead to significant changes in our current relationships.  This work is not geared towards blaming others for our own behavior, but to better understand the parts we have played and continue to play, in co-creating our relationships.