Family Systems Work:
Understanding patterns across generations
Relationships exist within larger systems—families that span generations, cultures, and continents. When working with families, my approach extends the same depth and sophistication to understanding how patterns move through systems, shaping connections across multiple relationships.
This work serves families navigating complex dynamics: multi-generational businesses, blended families across cultures, adult children and aging parents, or simply families seeking deeper understanding of their relational patterns.
A Systems Perspective
Family work recognises that:
- Patterns repeat across generations until understood and transformed
- Individual struggles often reflect systemic dynamics
- Change in one relationship affects the entire system
- Family narratives shape individual possibilities
- Cultural and generational differences require sophisticated navigation
Rather than treating family challenges as individual problems, this work develops collective relational intelligence—the capacity for families to recognise, understand, and transform their shared patterns.
Working with Complexity
Multi-Generational Dynamics
- Adult children navigating parental relationships
- Succession planning in family enterprises
- Caregiving decisions and elder transitions
- Legacy and inheritance considerations
Blended Systems
- Step-family integration
- Co-parenting across households
- Former spouse relationships
- Cultural and faith differences
Family Transitions
- Supporting members through individual crises
- Navigating divorce within family systems
- Geographic dispersion and reunion
- Business and personal boundary management
The Therapeutic Approach
Family sessions create space where each member can be genuinely heard while maintaining focus on systemic patterns rather than individual blame. This isn’t about determining who’s right or wrong, but understanding how the family system creates and maintains certain dynamics.
Through this work, families develop capacity to:
- See beyond individual positions to systemic patterns
- Create communication that honours different perspectives
- Navigate complexity with greater awareness
- Transform inherited patterns for future generations
Professional Framework
With extensive training in systemic and family therapy, I understand how to maintain therapeutic structure while working with multiple family members. Sessions are carefully structured to ensure all voices are heard while maintaining focus on transformation rather than arbitration.
Beginning Family Work
Whether navigating succession in a family business, supporting adult children through transitions, or addressing multi-generational patterns, I invite you to explore how systemic work might serve your family.
Quote
Family pathology rolls from generation to generation like a fire in the woods taking down everything in its path until one person, in one generation, has the courage to turn and face the flames. That person brings peace to his ancestors and spares the children that follow.”
Terry Real