/fam.i.ly/ /ther.a.py/

n.noun

Family therapy is a kind of psychological counseling (psychotherapy) that helps family members gain the ability to resolve conflicts with their communication skills .

Family therapy is most commonly used as a short-term treatment. A session may include the whole family or just part of the family, depending on the willingness and issues of family members. The ultimate goal of a family therapist is to bring families back together and repair their damaged relationships.

Families that have a troubled teen or teens can especially benefit from family therapy. This is because troubled teens can often strain their families relationships with each other by displaying negative, out of control behaviors. Furthermore, troubled adolescents often separate themselves from their families, leaving parents and respective family members in a state of dismay and feeling hopeless as to what they can do to offer help to the adolescent. By participating in family therapy, strained relationships and family dynamics can be restored. Family members can learn new steps in helping providing support to the troubled adolescent by assisting them in their time of need. Family support perpetuates the therapeutic treatment a troubled adolescent may have learned while enrolled in therapeutic treatment. In the end this can ensure that the troubled teen is able to continue growing, become a productive member of society, and further distance themselves from their troubling and influential past.