Systemic Family Therapy
I provide Systemic Family Therapy in Noosa and online for families experiencing difficult or complex periods in their lives. My practice is grounded in systemic and narrative approaches, with particular experience working alongside families affected by complex trauma, eating disorders, significant mental health difficulties and relationship difficulties.
Family difficulties are rarely simply about one person.
When someone is struggling, the effects are felt by the people around them. Families can become caught in patterns of responding to one another that make sense in the circumstances, but which can become increasingly difficult to change. Sometimes the problem appears to belong to one person; sometimes it is difficult to separate the person’s difficulties from the relationships and circumstances in which they are living.
Systemic Family Therapy provides an opportunity to step back and look at these patterns together.
Rather than asking only “What is wrong?” or “Who needs to change?”, we can ask,
How have we come to be here?
Together we examine the relationships, histories, expectations, responsibilities and ideas that shape what happens between people. This can include looking at how a problem has affected the family, how family members have come to respond to it, and how those responses may have become part of a pattern that is difficult for everyone to escape.
The purpose is not to assign blame or decide who is responsible for a difficulty. It is to create enough space for different perspectives to be heard and for familiar patterns to become visible. Once something can be seen differently, other possibilities for responding to it can sometimes become available.
Family therapy can be particularly useful when:
- a child or adolescent is experiencing significant mental health difficulties
- an individual’s difficulties are closely connected with family or relationship dynamics
- family members are struggling to understand one another or respond to a shared difficulty
- a family has become caught in recurring patterns of conflict, withdrawal, protection or responsibility
- significant changes, trauma, illness or other events have altered the way a family relates to one another
- everyone is trying to help, but their attempts to do so are increasingly making things more difficult
My approach is collaborative, thoughtful and sometimes demanding. Family therapy is not about teaching a family a predetermined way of communicating or identifying a single person as the source of the problem. It is an opportunity to think together about what is happening and what might become possible.
Who attends family therapy?
There is no requirement that every member of a family attend every session. Depending on the circumstances, sessions may involve the whole family, particular family members, a parent or parents, or a combination of individual and family sessions.
We can discuss who should be involved when arranging an initial appointment.
Appointments
Systemic Family Therapy appointments are generally 90 minutes. Family sessions tend to involve more people, perspectives and material than individual psychotherapy, and the additional time allows sufficient space for these to be explored without reducing the session to a discussion of the immediate problem.
Sessions are available in person at Noosa Health and Wellness Collective or online.
Fees
The standard 90-minute session fee is $345.
Medicare and Insurance
Systemic Family Therapy is not currently eligible for a Medicare rebate under the Better Access initiative.
Some Private Health Funds may provide cover for family therapy or psychotherapy. If applicable, I can provide an invoice for you to discuss with your insurer.
You do not need a GP referral to arrange a family therapy appointment.
Getting Started
If you’re considering family therapy, you can contact me to arrange an initial appointment or discuss whether Systemic Family Therapy is likely to be appropriate for your situation.