Preparing for Family Counseling Sessions
For many people, working with a family counselor is a double-edged sword: it’s rewarding because they know it can help them improve their relationships but also nerve-racking because it requires them to bare their soul. Fortunately, if you feel nervous about your upcoming session, you don’t have to fret since you can make it less overwhelming by taking several steps. Here are some of the preparations what you must make before your family counseling session:
Write down the topics that you want to focus on
Your counselor will guide you through discussion topics that they think will be helpful for you and your family. However, they can’t really read your mind and predict exactly what you want to talk about, which is why it’s important to make some notes about the issues that you’d like to raise and the points that you want to make. This way, you’re assured that you, your loved ones, and your therapist will be able to touch upon about the topics that have been bothering you, and you can start to resolve the problems that have been weighing down on your relationships.
Decide what you’d like to say during therapy
It’s hard to remember what to say to each of your family members as well as to your counselor in the heat of the moment. Because of this, it’s advisable to think about the message that you’d like to deliver to your loved ones and decide how you’ll deliver it. Taking these steps can be helpful especially if spur-of-the-moment speeches aren’t exactly your thing and if your family members tend to get defensive when you point out the things that they don’t agree with.
Use these tips to be fully prepared for your family counseling session and ensure that you’ll get your desired outcome. If you need more advice, or if you’re still looking for the right therapist to trust, don’t hesitate to reach out to Adrien Survol Rivin PSYD and use my professional family therapy services in Sherman Oaks, CA. Contact me today at (818) 784-7107!