Family Counselling Services in Beamsville, ON.

A family is defined as a group of people who care about each other and call themselves a family. This could include parents and children, partners, grandparents, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, cousins, friends, caregivers and other professionals that are close to the group. The goal of family therapy is to help everyone in the family understand and support each other. This type of therapy can help when families are feeling overwhelmed, sad and angry; when they're unsure how to move forward; or when they feel that they are repeating the same harmful behaviours over and over.

Strong families assist each member to venture into the world as responsible and confident individuals. Counselling can help families build the strong foundation of understanding that’s required to do this. In Family Counselling you’ll learn the skills of effective listening that lead to better communication, as well as the ability to do conflict resolution in respectful and helpful ways.

Families don't have to be perfect but when a family functions well, parents and children fulfill their roles, enjoy their life together and develop in a healthy way. A healthy family means that all of the members are involved, children are empowered and self esteem develops. As a therapist, I can assess family issues, direct you in appropriate roles and responsibilities and help you communicate more effectively.

Family issues can make you stuck in unhelpful patterns of interaction. Sometimes it is hard for families to deal with these issues on their own because emotions are high and perspectives can be so different. It can be helpful to seek support from an objective therapist. I can help you look beyond your individual hurt and anger so that you can find the root of your issues and work collectively toward your shared goal of mending and understanding each other.

Every parent knows that different children respond in different ways. The same child can respond differently at times. So parents need multiple approaches. Children are developing their sense of self, exploring, learning to master skills. They move back and forth between experimentation and the security of the trusted parent. Parents are the sounding boards for their children's ideas and feelings until the children develop their own judgement. Sometimes children are pushing against parental restrictions. Adults try to balance between encouraging growth and limiting risk, maintaining expectations for safety and good behavior and encouraging children’s independence. Answers are not easy.

Family can often be the single most powerful element in our mental health journey. Like any relationship though, families often struggle with communication, forgiveness and conflict resolution. At Whiteboard we employ evidence-based techniques to help families heal and become whole again. These techniques not only involve patience and skill, they also require the lived experience that many of our counsellors have at our clinic.

Being a parent is hard. There are no instruction manuals and no guidebooks. We all become parents aware that it's the most important job we'll ever do, so now is the time to stop feeling frustrated and anxious, burned out and ineffective. My experience in working with parents and my training in solid parenting theory will combine with your vision for your family and your own personal approach to parenting to create the family harmony you're looking for. End the fighting, nagging, and disconnection with personalized strategies and tools designed just for your family. Don't let another day slip by feeling as though you can't get through to those you love the most. Your family is worth it!

We know parenting young kids (or even teens!) is hard. There is no “right way” to do it but when your child or teen is struggling, you sure wish there was a clear answer. We want to help use your strengths as a family to support and make positive change with you, without adding shame or guilt to the mix. We do this by using a Emotion Focused Family approach and a narrative style, to help find shorter term solutions for issues that are challenging your family, in order for you to find peace and joy in the long term.

Sometimes the difficulties occurring in a family are systemic - which means that there is not really a 'problem person' but a family interaction malfunction. In family counselling, it is understood that everyone in the family impacts and affects everyone else and the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. It is also understood that the way to 'fix' a family problem is not by simply changing specific behaviours, but by changing the structure of the family. This can be a very important process for the many different types of families that we have in our society.

My approaches to family therapy involves first recognizing the family system that exists. This includes identifying the different roles that each family member play within the system. In addition, an exploration of the communication styles, individual characteristics and behaviour patterns of each member of the family will help understand why potential conflicts or disagreements are occurring.

Families are remarkably resilient and have wonderful potential to heal one another. They typically develop patterns and structural characteristic over great periods of time that enable them to respond to both stressors from outside and inside the family. Helping families look at their patterns in novel ways, empowers them to make small and sometimes simple changes, greatly impacting outcomes. Family therapy is all about learning more about the patterns that keep families suspended when they desire change. In addition, family therapy harnesses the power and uniqueness of each family to recover and grow as a unit.

A family of four walks into a bar... (okay, therapist's office, fine) each with a different reason why they're there. Also, some of them don't want to be there at all! Get it! Actually, there's no punch-line, it's just normally how it goes. Regardless of what event brings them through the door, families often come in feeling divided and disconnected. That's why my job is to find the common ground so that everyone feels like they're being respected, heard, and have something to gain from the experience. My hope is that you will leave here: 1) Feeling more unified around a common goal 2) Clarity for how to move forward together 3) A renewed sense of what matters most

Everything relates to everything else, and families in all shapes and forms are no exception. Different ages, developmental levels in children, genders and or cultures need to be considered, when we try to establish a loving, respectful. proactive and supportive family team. I do believe, that the HOW, WHAT, WHEN and WHY of communication is what makes or breaks a family .... any relationship. Allow me to help you establish reasonable goals and find manageable solutions to challenges, which will improve your family's wellbeing. 905-842-3626

Imagine a family as a tree with branches, roots, trunk representing parts of the immediate and extended family. When working with families, all elements are considered. Usually there is a request for family therapy due to one of it's members in crisis, often a child. However, when an analysis of need is done it becomes apparent that more than one member of the family needs help in adjusting, growing and learning new behaviours. Clients contact me for a variety of reasons: to improve communications, solve family problems, support in special situations such as death, divorce, marriage, illness, child or adolescent issues.

Each family has its own unique personality that impacts the functioning of its members. I am trained in a variety of therapeutic models and the approach I take will be catered to your family dynamics and the special challenges that brought you here today. When working with the family, I help improve their ability communicate openly to challenging issues and work through ups and downs in their relationships.

Families...a place of refuge and joy for some, and a place of conflict, despair, and tragedy for others. If you and your family find your selves in less than ideal circumstances, meeting together with a counsellor can open to future to a different way of relating. I invite you to consider the opportunity to be guided in a time of genuinely hearing each other and of being heard. Though history can not be changed, the meaning and the impact on family functioning today can evolve towards more life-giving understandings and ways of being family together. Entrenched patterns often leave us stuck...naming these patterns and learning new skills can rekindle hopefulness and good will.

Family therapy is in many ways the most difficult of all therapy’s simply because you have the issues of not just one person but also all involved. There is a multiplication factor equal to the number within the family plus the dynamic of how the family organizes itself around communication, conflict, and intimacy and supports it. All successful families do two things extremely well . . . create a sense of belonging and allow for the freedom to be an individual. When I work with families I bring over twenty five years of experience to every session. Almost 100% of us across the nation . . . when asked what is the most important thing in our life, will answer ‘family’!

I am a firm believer that nothing impacts our spiritual and emotional well-being or happiness more than the quality of our closest relationships. There are countless complicating factors that impact families, it may be blending families, parenting differences, ex-spouses or in-law problems, financial stress and health problems, to name a few. Family therapy addresses the psychological and emotional problems hurting families. Interventions are customized to the requirements, needs and directions of clients. The goal is to empower the family to function in a way that better meets the emotional, psychological and spiritual needs of each member and the family system as a whole.

The Family Enhancement Centre offers trusted family counselling services where our therapists see whole family together with all its members. These sessions provide a great opportunity for everyone to be heard and speak about their feelings, emotions, expectations and vent out any anger and frustration. Some of the benefits that you can expect from our family counselling services are: - Enhanced relationships - Improved communication - Resolve conflicts - Develop and enhance parenting skills - Increase understanding among family members

When one family member is depressed, stressed, angry, or otherwise not at their best, it deeply affects the rest of the family. Sometimes individual therapy is the correct path, but often, addressing relationship dynamics within the family system is the quickest, most direct way of dealing with the issue. I work with all ages and all combinations of family members.

Blood is thicker than water... but we don't get to choose our blood. It can be tough sometimes, but family is family - you want to work things out, and I can help. Whether you're dealing with immediate relatives, a blended family, or your stubborn in laws, there are certain things that are proven to help improve the relationship. Most people have limited perspective; they only know their family and maybe the family of a few close friends. I've worked with dozens of families over the past seven years, and I've seen what helps and what hurts in almost every situation you can imagine. Get the tools you need to move forward and bring your family together again.

Family therapy often benefits from a client-centered approach. Throughout our sessions, we will focus on communication and the openness to share one’s feelings honestly. Using exercises, we will work on improving communication, listening skills and emotional honesty. The use of behavior therapy may also be incorporated where we seek to recognize and change destructive behavior patterns. Use of these approaches encourages families to engage in healthy communication styles and break habitual cycles of unhealthy behaviors.

A common problem that I see when helping families is that parents struggle to get their kids to finish tasks, stay organized, and cannot motivate them to do, well, anything. “Unless it’s YouTube or a video game they’re just not interested and I don’t want them always depend on me for everything.” There are a number of tools and methodologies that can help with these problems. It does take time and commitment; however, with the right support and guidance easier, friction-free, happier days are very possible.

All families are the same and all families are different. Therapy is based on the family as an organised social unit that goes through phases of gradual but emotionally-charged change. Roles and functions often collide with personal needs and changing individual needs and hormonal behaviours that will clash with parenting styles triggering power struggles. Family dynamics must find a way to balance the conflicting childrens' needs to assert distinct identities while integrating conflicting parental values. Family therapy is difficult but growth-inducing for all but I find it helpful to see individuals separately for them to express ideas and feelings freely as it helps with communication.

Family relationships are complex and are oftentimes impacted by various events, life transitions, and societal shifts. I believe that every family is unique and that your efforts to navigate challenges are valid and purposeful. As a family therapist, my aim is to help you strengthen your relationships with one another and to support you in finding a balance between your individual and family needs. I also help you to identify possible areas of stuckness and conflict as well as strengths and resources, so that together, we can create hoped-for solutions. Contact me or book a free consultation if you wish to learn more.