Family Systems Therapy: Strengthening Bonds and Resolving Conflicts

An old proverb goes something like this: “We begin and end with family.” Yes, the family unit is central to our lives. However, they are not without tensions and conflicts, which can affect every member of the family on a personal level. Therefore, psychotherapy (or therapy) can be of immense help in resolving these tensions and conflicts as a unit and prevent them from worsening into something more damaging.

Family systems therapy focuses on the family as a unit, as a medium to resolve tensions and conflicts. The understanding is that if something affects one member, it has ripple effects on the entire family. This therapy supports families in resolving problems together, improving communication, and fostering lasting, positive change.

Family systems therapy was developed in the 1950s by Murray Bowen. Family systems therapy believes that, more often than not, problematic patterns begin in the family. So, when the family works as a unit, they can change these patterns and move toward creating open and safe family environments.

Unlike other traditional psychotherapies, family systems therapy centered on the family rather than one person. In doing so, it incorporates generational, community, social, and cultural factors that affect the person as well as the family.

There are eight core principles that family systems therapy is based on:

Differentiation Of The Self:

This principle emphasizes the need to develop an independent personality while still remaining connected with the family.

The Triangle:

It is a dynamic that can develop between three members of the family, which can then affect other members of the family.

Family Projection Process:

Parents can project their fears and anxieties onto their children, who can then project their fears and anxieties onto others.

Nuclear Family Emotional Process:

This refers to the emotional patterns occurring within the family. For instance, distant relationships, marital conflict, and so on.

The Multi-Generational Transmission Process:

Generational differences occur among family members. Small levels of differentiation, like those between parents and children, can snowball and lead to greater levels of differentiation between family members over generations.

Sibling Position:

Birth order can affect each child, siblings, and even parents. The birth order typically looks something like this: firstborn, middleborn, and lastborn.

Emotional Cutoff:

Unresolved conflicts can lead to distance among family members, and they can become emotionally cut off from each other.

Emotional Processes In Society:

Family does not exist in isolation but as part of the wider society. Therefore, societal and cultural factors can impact individual family members as well as the family as a whole.

Family systems therapy offers a wide range of benefits, such as:

• Open and positive communication patterns, as the therapy seeks to identify and change non-productive communication patterns.
• As open and positive communication patterns are developed, it leads to better connections and togetherness among family members.
• Improved family dynamics, where family members collaborate to create an environment conducive to better mental health and stronger relationships.

The different types of family systems therapy techniques used are as follows:

Psychoeducation:

It educates family members regarding the intricate connection between family health and individual mental health to foster empathy and understanding among family members.

Structural Family Therapy:

A unique family systems intervention, it identifies the structure of a given family to improve communication patterns among family members.

Strategic Family Therapy:

It sees the individual in the family and designs personalized approaches to address the unique challenges and needs of each member.

Couples Therapy:

Unresolved conflicts between couples, like parents, can have wide-ranging effects on the family. Improving communication between couples improves the family dynamic as a whole.

Intergenerational Family Therapy:

Families identify how maladaptive patterns passed on from one generation to the next affect family members to improve them.

Narrative Therapy:

You develop a story of your life to rewrite maladaptive patterns and foster self-worth and resilience.

Also, Read: The Gottman Method Therapy.

Family systems therapy is integral to substance abuse and mental health treatment. The reason being, the person is integral to the family and the family is integral to the person. What affects one person can affect the family as a whole and vice versa.

Remember we said that most problems have their roots in the family? So, by improving family dynamics, the patterns leading to substance use disorders or mental health conditions can be identified and changed.

The conditions that can treated with family systems therapy are as follows:

• Substance use disorders
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Eating disorders
• Personality disorders
• Stress
• Trauma
• Interpersonal conflicts and disturbances.

Family systems therapy is a highly effective, evidence-based practice. It is used in the treatment of challenges like substance use disorders, anxiety, depression, attachment problems, codependent relationships, eating disorders, and other interpersonal conflicts. In fact, a recent study showed that family systems therapy has been highly effective in treating substance use disorders among teenagers, bipolar disorder, and perinatal depression.

Family systems therapy is crucial in fostering social support, which is extremely crucial to achieving healing and lasting recovery from substance use disorders and mental health challenges.

If you think family systems therapy can benefit you and your family, then finding a licensed mental health practitioner with advanced training in family systems therapy is the first step. However, this can be challenging, especially if it is your first time.

At the NuView Treatment Center, our team will seek to understand your family as well as your unique needs and goals and connect you with a mental health practitioner who is best aligned with your journey to healing and harmony. In the therapy sessions, you and your family will be provided with a safe, open environment where each of you can voice your thoughts and emotions, understand one another, come together, heal, and move toward becoming a unit.

Q1. What is the family systems approach in therapy?

A: The family systems approach in therapy focuses on families working together as a unit to resolve tensions and conflicts.

Q2. What are the 4 types of family therapy?

A: The 4 main types of family therapy are structural family therapy, strategic family therapy, couples therapy, and narrative therapy.

Q3. How does family systems therapy differ from individual therapy?

A: Family systems therapy is focused on the person as well as the family, while individual therapy focuses on a single person.