Family Counseling Encino
Among the most important and influential systems in our lives are our families, which mold us, from the moment we come into life, through our interactions in this system of relationships with our parents, siblings, and extended family, which shape us into the people we are today. Families are unique social systems with their own patterns of communication and structure, which can be established by all sorts of variables, including parents’ beliefs and values, personalities of family members, and the influence of members of the extended family; due to these factors, every family has its own distinct personality which affects all members. Family counseling Encino is based on the concept that illness that affects one member of the family may be a symptom of a greater problem affecting the whole family, like a disease, as well as the idea that any change in one member affects the whole family structure as well as each individual member.
Within each individual family lies unique problems that cause stress, grief, anger, disconnection, misunderstanding, and many other feelings, both positive and negative, and we feel some of the most intense emotions while dealing with problems existing in the family system structure. While each family deals with all sorts of different problems, some common problems in the family include finances, substance abuse, behavioral issues, mental health issues, divorce, recurring illnesses, and many other issues. When members of a family runs into these kinds of issues, it distresses the unique family dynamic, which affects the functioning of each member through tensions and conflicts, causing negative effects on mental and physical health, relationships, and ability to complete everyday tasks.
In every family, there are issues that arise which causes conflict between members of the family that is negatively affecting the dynamic and keeping it from functioning as it should, with all members acting as a cohesive unit or team. It is when family conflict occurs that counseling sessions can be the most useful tool available to help your family to get along, by learning more about each other to gain a better understanding of how your unique family dynamic functions. With help from a licensed family therapist, you can learn about the underlying reasons which cause negative behaviors and the ways in which your family can deal with these issues. Resolving family issues is crucial to keeping your family’s relationships healthy between all members.
Most therapy sessions for family counseling is short term and work to address issues such as their communication styles and well as other pressing issues that seem to be directly affecting or interfering with the cohesiveness of the family unit. Something that most people do not realize is that problems in the family do not have to be severe for counseling to be useful, as it is extremely helpful in making a conscious effort to put an end to unhealthy behavioral and communicational patterns. This kind of family therapy is useful when a therapist meets with multiple members of the family in group sessions, as well as meeting individually to meet specific family concerns. Group sessions are helpful in showing the family dynamic as well as the relations between each of the family members.
If you and your wife or husband are experiencing marital issues, it is likely that this problem is not just affecting the two of you, but is also acting as a burden on your children, and the whole family. When the parents in a family are having problems, the way that the rest of the family will behave is directly affected by this conflict, with some members siding with either party. Counseling can help to mend these marital problems and the family issues caused by them.
Conflicts between children and parents can create massive conflict within the family, even causing it to become potentially dysfunctional. When children hit their teenage years, they often begin acting out against their parents, which can cause distress in the family dynamic. Unless the members of the family can come to an understanding of one another, there will continue to be conflict between family members. Therapy sessions for the family are extremely helpful in teaching to communicate effectively, as well as learning to understand one another. When parents and their children are able to communicate with each other, there will be no reason for conflict, as they have reached an understanding of the family.
In many families, there are problems that exist between siblings that cause issues for the whole family. Some cases can include situations where one child is treated differently than the other, favoring one over the other, and holding them to different standards. Through family therapy sessions, issues like these can be addressed and resolved through open communication. Other problems within families that can be treated by therapy are the effects of illness and substance abuse. These issues affect the individual and the family, as these kinds of issues affect the way a person acts, and drastic behavioral changes can cause distress in other members of the family. Counseling can help your family to understand the struggles of those dealing with illness and substance abuse and help them to overcome these issues.
Because there is no family that has perfect relations between all of their members, most all families could benefit from attending counseling sessions to live healthier family lives. By attending family therapy sessions, you can learn to understand how your family functions, identify your family system’s weaknesses and strengths, learn methods to resolve challenges, improve communication skills, and strengthen the whole family. Family therapy is helpful in dealing with any conflicts that arise between child and parent, parents, or siblings, as well as getting the whole family to get through these issues together as a cohesive unit. Through counseling sessions, a whole family can learn to deal with a member’s individual problem, before it becomes a worse issue and begins affecting other members of the family as well.
For those who are looking to preserve the healthy, functioning dynamic of their family life, getting family counseling Encino from Alice Dollinger is a crucial step to keeping balance in their family system.
Credentails & Contacts
Alice’s goal is to help her client’s learn to make conscious choices rather than repeating the same old behavior and expecting a different outcome.
Qualification
Years in Practice: 20+ Years
School: Philips Graduate Institute
Year Graduate: 1989
License and State: MFC30340 California
Finances
Cost Per Session: $150
Accepted Insurance Plans: All PPO’s
Phone and Video Counseling