While no family is perfect, certain psychological, emotional, and behavioral issues can create chaos within a home. This turmoil can be external or internal, causing either turbulent interactions or simply a sense of unease in a place that should feel safe. 

Addressing these as a family in the company of a licensed therapist can cultivate understanding, relieve tension, and bring about:

• Better communication
• Healthier boundaries
• Functional family dynamics
• Improved problem-solving
• Defined household roles
• Collaborative coping skills 

Address the Underlying Cause of Conflict

Interpersonal conflicts within a family unit often arise due to a deficit of knowledge and coping skills surrounding disorders such as Autism, ADHD, OCD, Anxiety disorder, Clinical Depression, Schizophrenia, Bipolar disorder, and PTSD.

Domestic disharmony can also come about through the mishandling of distressing emotions after disaster strikes or other major changes are in place. No matter the cause of a family’s problems, effective communication is crucial in working through them together. 

This is where family counseling can change the dynamic, charting a course to calmer waters and more secure attachments, tackling issues such as:

• Sibling and marital conflicts
• Difficulty expressing emotions
• Dysfunctional interactions 
• Major changes or loss
• Repatterning after a divorce
• Inconsistent parenting styles

Examine Roles & Remedy Relationships 

There are many routes a counselor can take to steer a family toward greater collaboration and collective fulfillment. One of the most successful theories to build upon according to studies is Family Systems Therapy. 

Through examining the entire family as a singular emotional unit (sort of like an ecosystem), a counselor can show each individual how their actions affect the whole, as well as how to contribute to a harmonious shared life.

Instead of singling anyone out, this approach is about discovering how everyone can help strengthen the household. Its three main modalities are: 

• Structural Family Therapy

Evaluate the structure of the family by examining patterns, relationships, and behaviors that are exhibited during therapy sessions.

• Strategic Family Therapy

Evaluate the family’s functions and processes, such as problem-solving and communication styles, through discussions about events that happen outside the therapy session.

• Intergenerational Family Therapy

Evaluate how current problems could potentially stem from patterns that are passed down generationally by examining multigenerational behavioral patterns.

Support the Process with Psychological Concepts

Any type of therapy that draws from the Family Systems Theory is supported by eight key concepts. While a therapist may not state these explicitly, they will use them to gain insight as they pave a path to a peaceful home life. 

Developed by founder of the theory Murray Bowen, these tools are extremely useful in pinpointing sources of problems and lovingly repatterning a family’s dynamic:

• Emotional Triangle

A three-person relationship system

This is a simple way of examining emotional dynamics and how they relate to other relationships that develop around the system.

• Differentiation of Self

The ability to maintain individuality

While someone with high differentiation pursues goals independently, a person with low differentiation relies on the validation of others.

• Emotional Cutoff

Self-distancing of one member from the family

Some people may cut themselves off from their family emotionally in the face of conflict, preventing resolution and breeding underlying tension.

• Sibling Position

The specific roles assumed by siblings

The order in which children were born can affect parents’ expectations and discipline patterns, as well as sibling relationships.

• Nuclear Family Emotional Process

A family’s negative emotional interactions 

This includes intimate conflicts between partners, problematic behaviors displayed by one parent, impaired functionality in a child, and emotional distancing.

• Family Projection Process

The transmission of one person’s problems to another

When a parent projects their own anxieties onto their children, it affects their development and interactions with other family members. 

• Multigenerational Transmission Process

A pattern of choosing partners with similar differentiation levels

This states that differentiation tends to decrease with each generation, pointing out potential sources of conflict so new seeds can be planted.

• Societal Emotional Process

Societal attitudes and conflicts that affect familial functions

Characteristics of a family’s surrounding community, such as cultural shifts and struggles, can affect the way they feel about one another and interact.

Let Corner Canyon Facilitate Lasting Change For Your Family

Corner Canyon Counseling has helped countless Utah families cultivate lasting harmony. No matter what you are facing, we hope you will come to us to support you through the process. 

A more peaceful and secure foundation is possible— Let us facilitate lasting change for your family, bringing you closer together so you can benefit from better communication and healthier boundaries for years to come.