Family

The pandemic has created an emotional petri dish for kids and parents who are stuck in place, terribly stressed, and feeling alone. How are families supposed... Read more

Although it’s never been easy to take oh-so-familiar systems principles and put them to work in real life, the devastating sweep of the pandemic has made... Read more

Our current caregiving crisis is a societal failure, not the result of one family’s shortcomings. Read more

Most clinicians need a mentor: someone who takes them under their wing and inspires them to be a better therapist. The five clinicians whose stories you’re... Read more

During the pandemic, our clients’ relationships need special attention and nurturing. Sometimes that means helping them recalibrate what they can hold for... Read more

The story of the Gavins—a family of 12 children, six of whom suffered from schizophrenia—sheds new light on the nature vs. nurture debate. Read more

Some clients in quarantine with their families report a constant feeling of being out of control. That danger lurks around the corner of every family... Read more

My name is Anita Mathilda Abram Mandley. That’s me peeking out from the lower left-hand corner of the picture. I’m with my great grandfather, great-great... Read more

A new book explores the reality of home DNA testing and the often unexpected fallouts. Read more

How our family lineages weave a connection of giving and taking and giving again. Read more

Americans have a history of valuing quick-fix solutions to difficult problems. But the simplistic psychopharmacological approach to depressive disorders... Read more

Many traditional approaches to couples therapy are built on the assumption that if you help a couple clear up the emotional issues in their relationship, sex... Read more

In order to understand the particularity of almost any couple's personal experience, we need to adjust our lens to include not only their private domestic... Read more

Successfully combining families as part of remarriage is always challenging. But it's especially hard when older re-couplers have adult children, who may or... Read more

What do the masters of truly good therapy have in common? According to couples therapist Bill Doherty, they know how to balance their desire to guide therapy... Read more

A child-custody consultant wrestles with the question of what is a good enough mother. Read more

Whether as playmate, protector, or tormentor, a big sister looms large in the imagination of her younger sibling. Read more

My family is haunted by depression. My mother can trace it back in her family at least six generations. When it hits, it hits hard. My own battle with... Read more

When you’re young, a car isn’t just a car—it can be a freedom machine. Read more

To my mother, who inherited the holiday after my grandmother's death, producing the seder was nothing short of a colossal chore—a feeling she'd communicate... Read more

Often, our attitudes toward anxiety symptoms are misguided, says Richard Schwartz, the originator of Internal Family Systems. By understanding responses... Read more

A karaoke performance on a psych ward helps a mother and daughter find a way to reconnect. Read more

A book about two sets of mismatched twins testifies to the power of both heredity and family loyalty Read more

How do you get family members to talk together productively? Enactments can be among the most valuable tools for getting a family's communication going. But... Read more

Despite the increasing popularity of psychiatric meds as the go-to remedy for everything from seasonal depression to social anxiety, drugs are often not the... Read more

Does sharing DNA with a total stranger automatically make him family? Read more

There comes a time in many families when there’s no choice but to face decisions that test the heart. Read more

Patricia Papernow, an expert in working with stepfamilies, helps us understand the fundamental issues and unique hurdles most stepfamilies must navigate. Read more

Although they make up nearly a quarter of the population, children are rarely a central part of therapists’ practices. Why? The most effective interventions... Read more

Far too often, trauma survivors appear to progress in therapy and then go home and fall right back into the same old patterns of negative emotion and... Read more