Family Issues and Family Counseling

An ideal family environment is where individuals support each other, share their thoughts freely, express their positive or negative feelings, and communicate their mistakes without judgment, thereby preventing elements that lead to conflict. However, many families fail to meet these necessary components to create an ideal family environment.

The factors that create family issues harm the family structure and damage relationships between family members. In this case, family counseling, which aims to resolve these issues, can provide significant benefits.

What Are Family Issues?

The family institution can vary from society to society over time. In some societies, only nuclear families connected by blood are considered, while in others, extended kinship relations are included in the concept of family. The family institution, defined as the smallest unit of society, must have individuals who live a quality and peaceful life, with strong communication bonds in addition to the blood and emotional ties between them. The concept of family in social psychology is divided into different types.

Types of family concepts are as follows:

• Nuclear families
• Single-parent families
• Re-married families
• Childless families
• Senior families
• Extended families

In order for a family institution to be defined as a 'healthy family', it must have several functions. Cooperation, spirituality, communication, coping skills, spending time together, problem-solving, sharing emotions, and accepting individual differences must be maintained in a healthy manner. However, in some families, when one or more of these functions cannot be maintained, family issues may arise.

Family issues generally arise from the sharing of household chores, the lack of responsibility awareness among family members, conflicts over child care, and issues related to the family’s financial livelihood. Family members experiencing economic and emotional problems may feel pressured and struggle to communicate healthily with other family members.

What Is Family Counseling?

Family counseling is a process aimed at solving the problems between individuals within the family institution. Family counseling, a psychological service, is different from individual therapies. It involves viewing the family institution as a single entity and seeing individuals as parts of the institution to address communication problems and other issues within the process.

Every family’s structure and spirit are unique. Therefore, different problems arise in each family, and different methods are applied to solve these problems. For the family institution to remain functional, it must maintain its integrity. However, in today's conditions, maintaining family integrity has become quite difficult. Family counseling services are highly beneficial in resolving family issues.

What Is the Purpose of Family Counseling?

Family counseling;

• Helps the family maintain its own resources in a sustainable manner
• Ensures the family retains its functional characteristics
• Helps family members set realistic goals
• Promotes open communication between family members
• Develops empathy skills among family members
• Helps family members create their own creative solutions to problems

The goal of family counseling is to resolve all the cognitive, emotional, and psychological conflicts that lead to family issues. Family counseling processes are carried out with the participation of all family members, and thus family issues are resolved in a healthier manner.

When Should You Seek Family Counseling?

Family counseling situations vary from family to family. What may not be a problem for one family may be for another, and in such cases, seeking family counseling may be necessary.

Some situations in which family counseling may be sought include:

• Relationship problems between spouses
• Marriage-related issues
• Divorce
• Financial/economic problems
• Post-trauma psychological support
• Loss and grief
• Substance use that causes addiction
• Domestic abuse, violence, and neglect
• Support for individuals with stepfamily members
• Chronic physical illnesses
• Behavioral disorders in children and adolescents
• School problems in children and adolescents

How to Choose a Family Therapist?

Family therapy is usually carried out through sessions attended by family members together or individually. At this point, the selection of a family therapist should ensure that all family members can establish strong communication. Additionally, a therapist with expertise in family therapy can provide much more qualified treatments for resolving your issues. If family members cannot solve these issues healthily on their own, seeking family counseling services will be highly beneficial.

Adult Therapy and Family Counseling

Any individual over the age of 18 can seek adult therapy or family counseling for personal psychological problems or family issues. In adult therapy, the therapist provides one-on-one support based on the problem. Special therapeutic methods are applied to help the client resolve communication issues, explore themselves, and eliminate feelings of pessimism.

Depending on the therapist's preference, the therapy style or methods used may vary. Therapy methods suitable for the client’s psychological issues can be applied. Behavioral, cognitive, or emotional therapy needs can be addressed with different therapy methods during the process. In family counseling, the causes of family issues are identified, and the aim is to resolve them.

People try to cope with painful events and emotions by suppressing them or trying to forget them. However, the solutions individuals apply without professional support may not be permanent and can lead to other psychological issues.

The psychotherapeutic methods applied to adults help individuals develop resistance to negative emotions, manage relationships, recognize their own weaknesses and strengths, reduce family issues to a minimum, better understand their experiences, and improve self-esteem and self-confidence.

Psychological Problems Addressed in Adult Psychotherapy

Psychological problems addressed in adult psychotherapy include the following:

• Depression and introversion
• Panic disorder
• Various eating disorders
• Various sleep disorders
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
• Anxiety disorders
• Sexual dysfunctions
• Issues in self-exploration
• Problems with interpersonal relationships
• Performance anxiety
• Decreased performance
• Stress disorders