The whole system
Family Therapy in Charlotte, NC
When one person in a family is struggling, everyone is adjusting around it. Family therapy treats the system rather than assigning a patient, which is often why it works when individual work has stalled.
Families come to us when
- Every conversation turns into a conflict or a shutdown
- A teenager has become unreachable
- A divorce, remarriage or blended household is not settling
- One member's anxiety, depression or substance use is reshaping the household
- Parents are undermining each other without meaning to
- A death, diagnosis or move has knocked the family off balance
Recognize several of these? That is usually reason enough to start a conversation. Request an appointment →
A family systems approach
Our Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists are trained specifically in family systems, a model that reads behavior in context rather than in isolation. A teenager's withdrawal, a parent's short fuse and a sibling's perfectionism are usually related, and the relationship between them is where the leverage is.
Family therapy is evidence-based and, for relational and behavioral problems, frequently outperforms individual therapy alone. Ashleigh Bryan brings years of intensive in-home family work to this; Angie Baquedano brings particular depth with blended and stepfamily structures, in English or Spanish.
What family therapy addresses
- Communication breakdown and chronic arguing
- Anger and emotional regulation across the household
- Teen behavioral concerns and school difficulties
- Anxiety and depression in a family context
- Blended families, stepparenting and co-parenting
- Parenting alignment and discipline consistency
- Grief and loss within the family
- Trauma affecting the household
- Changing family roles, new baby, launch, caregiving, retirement
- Work stress spilling into family life
Who comes to sessions?
It varies by goal. Sometimes the whole household, sometimes the parents alone, sometimes a parent and one child, and often a rotating combination. Your therapist will recommend a structure after the first session and adjust as the work progresses.
You do not need everyone to be enthusiastic. You need enough of the household present to change the pattern.
What changes
What clients tend to notice
- Conversations that do not end in slammed doors
- Clear, consistent structure that parents agree on
- Roles and expectations everyone understands
- A household that feels safe to be in
Who provides this
Family Therapy: questions we are asked
Does everyone have to attend every session?
No. Family therapy commonly moves between whole-family sessions, parent-only sessions and individual check-ins. Your therapist will structure it around the goal.
What ages do you work with?
Our family therapists work with preteens, teens and adults. For young children we can offer parenting-focused sessions and will refer out when a play-therapy specialist is the better fit.
Is family therapy covered by insurance?
Often, yes. We are in-network with BCBS PPO and Aetna. Family sessions are billed at our $170 rate for self-pay clients.
Do you offer family therapy in Spanish?
Yes. Angie Baquedano, LMFT, is fluent in English and Spanish and provides therapy in both.
My teen refuses to go. What do I do?
Start with a parent session. A great deal can shift from the parent side alone, and teens are far more likely to engage once the household dynamic has already begun to change.
Get started
Taking the first step is the hardest part.
Tell us a little about what is going on and we will match you with the right clinician, usually within a few days.
In-network with BCBS PPO & Aetna · Self-pay from $155 · Evenings until 8 PM