This week..

This week I learned that each member of the family is essential to the whole family's well being. According to systems theory the intimate group must be analyzed as a whole.  This means that an individual needs to be assessed with the whole in mind. Each of us plays certain roles in our families. We may be the nurturer, the instigator, the protector, the funny guy or a combination of a few of these.  We each play roles that together make up our unique family. When you go home for summer break do you feel like you revert to your old ways and habits? If so, this is because you have reverted back to the role you played in your family.  When something is going wrong in the family, it may be best to instead of pinpointing one individual look at the family as a whole. This allows you to see how each member is effecting the whole.  This is what Family Therapists do. They have a whole family come in, or a mother, father and child, or siblings and they look at the individuals in order to fix the whole. This was my introduction to family therapy and I think it's a great way to solve problems in your family.  I feel like a lot of people don't understand what Family Therapy is.. It isn't a psychiatrist asking "How does that make you feel?". Its not laying down on a couch, whining about whats wrong in your life. Its about addressing real issues in a neutral environment and working through them as a family.  I think that a lot of families and marriages could really benefit from this kind of therapy and they don't even know it.  This week I learned that I may want to be a Family Therapist one day..