Types of therapy
While most of the therapy sessions at Paracelsus Recovery are in a one-on-one setting, family therapy is a feature of some of our programmes. The aim of family therapy is to include family members in their loved one’s healing process so they can better support them in their recovery.
What is family therapy?
Family therapy is a type of talk therapy involving family members or couples that is used to support the recovery of our clients at Paracelsus Recovery. As a family-owned business, family values are at the core of what we do. While our treatment programmes focus on one individual, family therapy is often included in the process because we appreciate how family systems are central to facilitating recovery from mental health and addiction issues. Such challenges don’t happen in isolation; they affect and are affected by family dynamics. Therefore, including family therapy as part of mental health and addiction treatment is a vital piece of the recovery puzzle. Family therapy recognises that, when a person enters residential treatment for mental health or addiction, their family system plays a major role in both their struggles and their recovery.
Through participating in therapy with skilled psychotherapists, family members have an opportunity to express feelings and find ways of healing the cracks in their relationships, facilitating reconciliation and healthier ways of moving forwards for everyone involved. Family therapy is always tailored to the individual and their family at hand, but often involves understanding patterns so families can break free of cycles that fuel addiction or mental health struggles. This involves exploring topics such as recognising dysfunctional roles within the family, learning to communicate without judgement, and setting healthy boundaries. In family therapy, families also learn how to support the recovery of their loved one without enabling relapse. This involves creating a plan for cultivating a healthy home environment post-treatment.
How is family therapy helpful?
Family therapy can be highly effective in addressing a range of mental health and addiction issues, as it focuses on improving communication, strengthening relationships, and addressing dysfunctional family dynamics. This enables families to better support one another, resolve conflicts and create a healthier emotional environment that is conducive to sustainable and robust recovery. Family therapy does this by addressing dysfunctional patterns – family roles, communication issues, and enabling behaviours – that can either support or hinder recovery. Addiction and mental health struggles often strain relationships, leading to resentment, mistrust, or emotional pain. Family therapy helps to heal these wounds. Family therapy also helps you build a solid support system conducive to healing; recovery is stronger when you have a stable, supportive family environment after treatment and family therapy helps to include your family members in your recovery journey and get them on your side. Furthermore, family therapy educates your family, enabling them to understand what you are going through and develop healthy coping strategies to navigate the challenges involved in recovery.
There is a solid body of research supporting the efficacy of family therapy as part of comprehensive mental health and addiction treatment. As a result, family therapy is beneficial for treating a wide range of conditions. For example, family therapy helps parents deal with guilt and shame and learn to break the cycle of affluent neglect. Another example is addiction, which can be the product of family dynamics and also impacts family members of the addicted person in many ways, making family therapy a central element of comprehensive addiction treatment. In the case of anxiety, family therapy aids in reducing stress within the family system, helping individuals to develop coping strategies in a supportive environment. Overall, family therapy creates a supportive and structured environment where individuals and their loved ones can work together towards healing, understanding, and long-term recovery.
How is family therapy included in my programme?
Family therapy is just one element of your holistic treatment programme at Paracelsus Recovery. It is a complement to your intensive one-on-one therapy sessions and ongoing therapy with your live-in therapist. For family sessions, your family members will be present for the sessions, either online or in-person depending on your specific situation. It’s important to note that the term “family” does not always refer to blood relatives. Instead, ‘family’ can refer to anyone who has played a long-term supportive role in your life. For example, it could be your manager, a friend, or a partner. We also want to emphasise that we will never force you to include family members or loved ones in your treatment. However, we always recommend family involvement whenever possible as the benefits far outweigh any discomfort experienced throughout the process.
During family therapy sessions, our highly-skilled psychotherapists use a range of family therapy approaches, including Structural Family Therapy (SFT), Systemic Family Therapy, Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT) and Cognitive-Behavioral Family Therapy (CBFT). In all cases, they will adopt the approaches that best suit your needs and the goals of your bespoke treatment programme. Alongside family therapy, family psychoeducation is a key feature of our treatment programmes, helping families to learn about addiction, mental health conditions, triggers, relapse prevention, and coping mechanisms. By doing so, this helps family members to build a more supportive mindset towards the recovery of their loved one, shifting from blame and shame to understanding and compassion.
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