Five signs that indicate that it is time to get support:

#1 Feeling sad, angry or otherwise “not yourself.”
#2 Abusing drugs, alcohol, food or sex to cope.
#3 You’ve lost someone or something important to you.
#4 Something traumatic has happened.
#5 You can’t do the things you like to do.

Marriage and Family Therapists otherwise seen as (MFT’s) are mental health professionals trained in psychotherapy, family systems, and licensed to diagnose and treat mental and emotional disorders within the context of marriage, couples and family systems.

Marriage and Family Therapists broaden the traditional emphasis on the individual to attend to the nature and role of individuals in primary relationship networks such as marriage, partnerships, and the family.  As a Marriage and Family Therapist I am concerned with the overall, long-term well-being of individuals and their families.

The range of physical and psychological problems treated by MFT include marital and couple conflict, parent and child conflict, alcohol and drug abuse, sexual dysfunction, grief, distress, eating disorders and weight issues, children’s behavior problems, and issues with eldercare.

While traditional therapy focuses more on the individual, MFT examines how an individual’s behavior affects both the individual and their relationship as part of a couple or family. The theory behind MFT is that regardless of whether a problem appears to be within an individual or within a family, getting other family members involved in the therapeutic process will result in more effective solutions. My approach as a MFT is goal-oriented and works toward an established end result.

Dependent on the goals that are set by you and the severity of the situation that you face would dictate the length of time. Ultimately tailoring your therapy to meet your need with the best standard of care is my objective. Where some circumstances may require a short period of time in therapy other circumstances may require a longer period of time.

Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) is a form of psychotherapy that addresses the behaviors of all family members and the way these behaviors affect not only individual family members, but also relationships between family members and the family unit as a whole. Treatment is usually divided between time spent on individual therapy and time spent on couple therapy, family therapy, or both, if necessary. A Marriage and Family Therapist may also be referred to as couple and family therapy, couple counseling, marriage counseling, or family counseling that are often used interchangeably. I am a firm believer in working within family dynamics of all sexual orientations.

MFT is normally short-term therapy consisting of an average of 12 solution-focused sessions. More sessions may be required, however, depending on the nature and severity of the problem(s). In couple or marriage counseling, I will begin by meeting with both partners and then spend some time with each individual. In family therapy, I will also begin by meeting with the entire family and then, if appropriate, meet separately with individual family members. The first session is generally for information gathering, so that I can learn about the problem that brought you to therapy, get the thoughts of everyone involved, and observe couple/family dynamics. At the same time, you should be able to get a clear sense of my role and competency, the goals of treatment, and any “rules” to be observed in and out of sessions, such as who should attend which sessions and confidentiality of any information shared between and among partners or family members and myself. Over time, you will identify individual family roles and behaviors that contribute to conflicts, identify specific challenges, and explore ways to actively resolve issues.