Ambika Agnihotri
I have often heard people joking about how
it is unfair to not be able to choose the family they are born into.
Undoubtedly, family has a huge impact on individual’s life. Like in other
interpersonal relationships or groups, misunderstandings, communication gaps or
other such obstacles are experienced in a family. Family Therapy is a kind of
psychological therapy that individuals may seek in such a situation. The hype
around the television series ‘Family Therapy with Dr. Jenn’ got viewers
thinking about their family and the problems that may be lying unsolved or
unnoticed. Through this post, I wish to talk about Family Therapy and draw a
link between what I uncover about the intervention and ‘Family Therapy with Dr.
Jenn’.
Almost all
families face some sort of dysfunction at one point in time or another.
However, what is important to look at is whether or not they are able to attain
balance or normality in time. Most
families are able to regain a sense of wholeness and happiness (Ackerman,
2017). However, for those who might need professional help, Family Therapy
offers them a way to develop a healthy, functional family. Families may choose
to walk down this path to seek or maintain healthy functioning. It has proven
to be useful in all familial situations that cause stress, anger or conflict
(Family therapy, 2017).
Family therapy is a type of psychological
counseling technique. The aim is to help family members resolve conflict
through better communication, improved understanding and through learning
coping skills (Family therapy, 2017). It is usually a short-term intervention,
with about twelve sessions, each lasting an hour. However, how often the
sessions are held and the number of sessions are subjective since they depend
on the family's specific situation. The clients are the family members who are
able or willing to participate. Family therapy sessions can teach one skills to
deepen family connections and get through stressful times. These skills are
forward-looking and long term since they can be inculcated and continued even
after therapy ends.
Dr. Michael
Herkov (2016) elaborates on the intervention by pointing to the fact that in
Family Therapy, an individual’s problem is seen in the context of the larger
unit, that is, the family. The logic is that problems cannot be solved without
understanding the dynamics of the group. The intervention revolves around the
experience of change. The therapist’s ability to see the change or growth in
the family situation is of vital importance for the next step, that is, for the
clients to see the change. The therapist’s task is to facilitate and help the
clients realise that there is a change. Essentially, there is no difference in
the ‘perceived change’ and the ‘observed change’ since the goal is for them to
become aware of it. (Shazer & Molnar, 1984). Seeing the change is a trigger
for the clients to ‘shift’ from the maladaptive patterns of behaviour to
adaptive or healthy ones. Family therapists may include techniques from cognitive therapy, behaviour therapy,
interpersonal therapy or other types psychological therapies (Ackerman, 2017).
Through the
series ‘Family therapy with Dr. Jenn’, one is able to realise the importance
given to change in Family Therapy. However, that is not the first step.
Firstly, it is important for the clients/participants to accept the current
situation and their role in it. Only after this stage were the therapists able
to take the intervention ahead. Taking the example of the Dash brothers, it
took time for Damon Dash to realise and accept his role in the unhealthy family
environment. Upon successful completion of this, the next step was to make him realise that there is a need and possibility for
change. In addition, as pointed out by Dr. Herkov (2016), the way the
family operates provides useful information on how the present problem came
about. The power dynamic and the need for respect in Damon’s case surfaced only
after a couple of sessions that they underwent as a family.
The
trajectory of the therapeutic alliance formed between the clients and the
therapist, was different for each family and perhaps, each individual.
Nonetheless, it proved to be strong and positive. For example, in the case
of Sister Peterson, she started off being closed, aversive to the idea of being
vulnerable and most importantly, turning a deaf ear to others. However, as
therapy progressed, she was seen realising the importance of listening and
maybe even inculcated empathy for her pregnant daughter. Now, taking the
example of the Dejesus family, the therapeutic alliance and the conducive
environment provided were able to encourage and push the Mother to reveal the
hidden truth about her daughters’ biological Fathers.
Being a
reality show, there are bound to be ethical considerations of the impact on the
participants and the viewers. But over and above that, a consideration that
arose for me was the intermingling of Group therapy and Family therapy. Often,
there were sessions held where all five families were present in the same
space. This could have been a hindrance for the clients in opening up about
their personal issues and perceiving it as a safe space. The inconsistent
switching between Family Therapy interventions and Group Therapy interventions,
thus, seem problematic. Moreover, all the families lived in the same house,
leading to contact and ‘interference’ outside the therapy sessions too.
In conclusion, Family Therapy is a
psychological counselling technique undertaken by therapists to help
dysfunctional families reach a healthy, functional version of themselves. With
proper focus on process and the intervention, a lot of the problems faced by a
family can be solved, as in the case of ‘Family Therapy with Dr. Jenn’. Family
therapy can help improve troubled relationships, issues in the marital or
financial sphere, conflict between parents and children, the impact of
substance abuse or a mental illness on the family and a lot more. A family
could even pursue Family Therapy along with other types of mental health
treatments (Family therapy, 2017).
References
Ackerman,
C. (2017, June 27) What is Family Therapy? 6 Techniques and Interventions.
Retrieved from https://positivepsychologyprogram.com/family-therapy/
De Shazer, S., & Molnar, A. (1984).
Four useful interventions in brief family therapy. Journal of Marital and
Family Therapy. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-0606.1984.tb00020.x
Family therapy. (2017, September 20).
Retrieved from
https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/family-therapy/about/pac-20385237
Herkov, M.
(2016). About family therapy. Psych Central. Retrieved from
https://psychcentral.com/lib/about-family-therapy/
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