Individual Relational Therapy
People who are considering individual therapy don’t typically think about working with a marriage and family therapist. After all…marriage and family therapists work with couples and families…not individuals. Right?
While it is true that Marriage and Family Therapists do a lot of work with couples and families, we never lose sight of the individuality of each couple or family member.
When working with individuals, we do so within the context of their relational roles because individuals are also parents, children, young adults, middle-aged baby boomers, and/or older adults.
Individual Therapy is Never a Solitary Affair
Individual counseling can, at first blush, appear to be a solitary affair. After all, when there is only one identified client physically taking up space in the office, there is a tendency to assume that the scope of influence is limited to that singular person.
A systems perspective, however, recognizes that individual people are always a representation of the system or systems in which they interact.
Systems are Interdependent
A systems perspective also understands that a shift in the thinking or behavior of the individual will automatically cause a shift in the system and vice versa.
For instance, a troubled teen may be representative of a distressed familial system.
So it follows that if we locate the underlying source of the familial distress, which is rarely located in the identified patient, the distress of the teen will generally dissipate.
What makes us different
What distinguishes Marriage and Family Therapists from other therapeutic approaches is our relational or systemic perspective. When working with an individual, we hold space in the therapy room for all of the important relationships to which they belong.
The Whole is Greater…
…than the sum of its parts. Because Marriage and Family Therapists view their clients through the lens of relationship and interconnectedness, we understand that what affects the whole affects the individual and what affects the individual affects the whole.
Balancing Individuality and togetherness
Relationally healthy individuals know how to balance their need for autonomy with their need for togetherness.
Call today to learn more about how individual therapy can help you achieve your relational goals.
Read More: Relationship With Self