Family Counseling Services in Marina del Rey, CA.

Families are the places where we should find the love and support to face the world and all its challenges. However, sometimes families loose their way due to poor communication and misunderstandings , anger, acting out behaviors, hurt feelings and lack of knowledge. Maya Angelou has said: "People do what they know; when they know better, they do better." My plan for families is to help them know better so they can do better. Where there is loving-kindness and a will to make change the future seems brighter.

Family relationships can be stressful and challenging. There may be anger, arguments, grief & loss, mental or physical illness, unresolved trauma, abuse, neglect, betrayal, financial or occupational challenges that create distress in the family system. Healthy family members have open, honest and compassionate communication. They hear, know and understand each other. They take responsibility and are accountable for their impact on each other. They show love and care through affection, attention, appreciation, being of service, spending quality time with and being there for each other. I guide you in developing the skills, qualities and habits needed to get your family to a better place!

As a family therapist, I facilitate fair discussions, offer suggestions for changes, teach communication skills and new ways of coping. This helps with understanding each other and finding solutions. I look at the whole family to see whether certain patterns or traits were learned from the previous generation without realizing that some of them may have been ineffective or harmful, even though they seemed familiar and "normal.” Since parents are the heads of the family, they need to work together, not against each other. It's important to make sure that boundaries between the family members are clear, visible, and consistent. This all can improve your family life considerably.

As a Family Therapist, I specialize in facilitating conversations where all voices can be heard and new understanding can be reached. Psychotherapy offers many opportunities for dialogue. My approach opens space for different experiences, perspectives and possibilities for the future. It is a chance to heal past hurts, deepen relationships and move forward with increased sharing and connection.

Most family therapists inadvertently create more chaos through their well-intentioned efforts to assist a family move through a change process. Why? Brains are inherently deregulated (all of us, may I add) and most talking and dialoguing misses brain-centric problems that need more intensive help. Many times the emotional trauma created by years of solving problems ineffectively can wreak havoc on the brain's parasympathetic nervous system, not ever giving the family a break from flight or fight thinking. Contact us for an innovative neuroscience solution to family dysfunction. Kevin@kevinflemingphd.com or 877-606-6161.

Everyone has a family, even if no two families are identical. Family may mean different things to different people, but there is no denying that the relationships we have shape us as individuals. Some families have healthy traits and some have more toxic traits. In my family work, I aim to help to uncover systems both that are working, and systems that are not working. I also aim to help each member of the family feel heard in asking for their own needs and boundaries to be met, appropriate within the family and cultural context.

Many times families need help to deal with struggles between them, or to get through difficult circumstances. Each relationship within a family is different from all others, and may need specific opportunities to express thoughts and feelings. Supportive and encouraging therapy may be just what is needed to remove blocks between family members so that the love can flow again.

Family therapy is helpful in understanding your family unit. Understanding each member of the family as having roll, responsibility and expectation is the beginning of the process of understanding what works and does not work within your family unit. Working with the family from this starting point, will hopefully open the door to improved communication among each family member.

We all begin life and grow up as part of a family that may be composed of blood relatives or adopted parents or a foster family. This family, regardless of how it's composed, will influence our lives in major and significant ways by conditioning how we experience the world. How we internalize what we see, hear, and feel in the world is profoundly influenced by and formed within our family of origin. We also learn how to interact with others, including how we experience love or the lack thereof. My approach to Family Therapy is filled w/ compassion and understanding. As a husband and dad of 3 kids, I have experienced my own joys & sorrows, which allows me to empathically attune to my clients.

Is your family life chaos? Are your kids running things? Are you going through a divorce and don't know how to tell the kids? Dr. Eris Huemer has worked with familes and children as a counselor and coach as well as being a Supervisor for Behavior Interventionists and Floortime Therapists for children and adolescents with behavior disorders such as Autism, Learning Delayed, ADHD, Mental Retardation and more. There are very few family dynamics and problems that Eris hasn't helped a family solve. Dr. Eris works to help the family identify its strengths and to reach a concrete solution in a brief period of time.

A family is not just a collection of people. Everyone in the family impacts the family dynamic, how the people relate to each other. And, each person changes that dynamic, in a unique way, even when they may not intend to. If you’re having difficulties in your family, we can address how the family’s rules of relating and the patterns of relationships can help to make things better. We’ll also see how unproductive patterns can be eliminated.

Families can benefit from therapy as change is a constant and often may be difficult. Even if only one family member is struggling with a physical or mental health issue/ illness, the entire family is often directly affected. I have a great deal of experience in family therapy and can assist in unpacking the struggles that can lead to one of more members of the family experiencing depression, anxiety, & distancing. Often a family is impacted by significant struggles such as job security, household duties, child/adolescent changes, marital discord, etc., and can create struggles in communication. Life transitions can lead to problem areas; roles often change as well within the family system.

I offer family therapy for families who have young children and/or adolescents. This is a speciality! I have three therapists who have different specialtes with family therapy! One is a teen and teen parenting specialists, another specializes in families with young children and another specializes in difficult families, families and trauma and another still with single parent families or blended families (families coming together with other families). I specifically work with families and parents of teens and alterative families (gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender families - either parents are GLBT or families who have a GLBT child). Call me and one of us will be the perfect match!

In a society that has become extremely technological, many sensitive young adults have disconnected from nourishing relationships in favor of virtual ones. Connecting with parents, siblings, friends and neighbors, has been replaced by less emotionally fulfilling forms of interaction. My specialty is improving relationships. I can help you build better communication with your child. I can also assist your family in resolving issues from the past for a fresh start. I will support you in creating a more peaceful home environment. So, as difficult as things may seem right now, in working with me your can rest assured that better times ahead.

When I work with families, a large focus of the work is learning to communicate with each other. It is also learning to hold space for one another and heal attachment wounds. My space is nonblaming and nonjudgemental. I am always aware of the power dynamics in the room. When I work with minors, I like to involve family members. That can be a caregiver or other family members.

When one person in the family is plagued by a problem, it disrupts the whole system. Feeling disruptions in the family is difficult and may be the reason family therapy is the right choice for you. I believe that by providing family therapy, the family can learn to live more cohesively and talk to one another, not at each other. A good family therapist is one to help put the pieces back together after things have fallen apart. I listen to family members individually and as a whole to hear what the problem is from their perspective and treat it accordingly. Getting family therapy may be the best decision of your lives. Call for a free, confidential consultation today.

Every family has some sort of dysfunction since individuals are not perfect. I have worked for over ten years with youth and their families. I believe family therapy is essential when working with youth since children and adolescents have limited insight and need structure, guidance, and discipline from parents/caregivers. I begin the initial session meeting with the parents/caregivers to identify and discuss problems and confidentiality. I then meet with the youth/children with the parents to work on agreed treatment goals. The ultimate goal of family therapy is to increase open and respectful communication and improve parent/child relationships.

Families engaging in therapy with me will find a compassionate and strong leader who understands the profound stress that family conflicts and perpetual problems can create. My approach is centered on guiding families through their tensions and difficulties, providing a structured and supportive environment where each member feels heard and valued. By focusing on your family's unique dynamics and challenges, I facilitate open communication and collaboration, leading to practical and lasting solutions. Clients will leave with a renewed sense of connection and the tools to foster a more harmonious family life, turning seemingly insurmountable problems into opportunities for growth.

Do you find yourself overwhelmed and frustrated with your daily family routines? Do conversations often lead to arguments and hurt feelings? Would you like a more enjoyable fun-loving family relationship? If so, I can help. I provide support with managing daily challenges & helping you reach family goals. I believe in a systemic approach, so sessions can include you, your child, your spouse or any combination of family members. During sessions we can address specific issues like: staying calm during disagreements or tantrums, establishing routines, decreasing arguments & improving communication. We can also work on broader goals like bringing more fun & cohesiveness to your family unit.

My clinical approach to Family Therapy begins with an evaluation to determine and understand the issues within the family context. It is the goal of therapy to provide a safe environment for family members to express their concerns about the family dynamic. It is at the beginning of therapy that treatment goals are determined. Emotional needs for each family member will be explored. Treatment consists of teaching conflict resolution and communication skills to help family members be able to address conflict more productively and with less distress. My clinical approach consists of instilling insight for families about the relational dynamic within the family.

When a crisis hits it can be hard to know what to do. Family can be messy, my role is to help you and your family come together in a deeper more meaningful way. Not only will we be looking at the specifics of the conflict/situation at hand, we will also work on developing tools and strategies that uniquely meet the needs of you and your unique family's dynamic. If you feel we might be a good fit--I'd love to hear from you and see how I can be of support.

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.

We need our families. If your family is in danger of disconnecting or falling apart, let's work together to lean toward each other instead of away. No one family member is ever the cause of disfunction. We each must learn our responsibility in the mix. My approach to healing families is to help each member understand how they absorb stress, and explain it to the group in a way that will be heard. Our family is our home base. Let's keep it that way by learning empathy for each other's struggles.

In these challenging times, the support of a group can be a powerful tool in preventing and coping with many of the symptoms you or your child may be experiencing. Groups are offered via tele-therapy and facilitated by a therapist on a weekly or monthly schedule. Get the accountability you need to reach your goals and not slip into negative coping patterns.

Family therapy looks at the entire family system—parents, children, extended family members—to identify strengths and problematic behaviours. I collaborate with families on strategies for utilizing their own capabilities for resolving problems, and on developing effective communication and problem-solving skills for preventing conflicts. I specialize in working with families of teenagers, which is an age that can be challenging for both the teenagers and their parents.