Family Therapy Service

Systemic Family Psychotherapy for families who feel stuck in the same painful cycles — and want real change that lasts.

When family life becomes tense, unpredictable, or emotionally distant, it’s easy to assume someone in the family is “the problem”.

But in most families I meet, the real issue isn’t one person.

Family and Systemic Psychotherapy looks beyond individual behaviour to understand the patterns, how relationships, emotional histories, and family dynamics shape what’s happening now.

Rather than working with one person in isolation, this approach considers the whole family system — recognising that stress, conflict, or distress often develops through patterns of interaction, not individual failure. By working systemically, we focus on restoring connection, improving communication, and creating sustainable change that holds every family member in mind.

The way stress, fear, grief, trauma, neurodivergence, pressure, or old wounds begin to shape how everyone relates — until the family feels like it’s living in survival mode.

Family therapy gives you a safe, structured space to slow everything down, make sense of what’s happening between you, and rebuild connection — without blame.

Who this is for

Family therapy can help if you’re experiencing:

Family relationship difficulties
Child and adolescent mental health issues
Adult mental health issues
Child, adolescent and adult behaviour difficulties
Parenting issues
Illness and disability in the family
Separation, divorce and step-family life
Fostering, adoption, kinship care and the needs of ‘looked after’ children
Domestic violence and abuse
Self-harm
Drug and alcohol misuse
The effects of trauma
Physical illness, death, dying and bereavement
Difficulties related to ageing and other life cycle changes

This work supports families with children of any age — from early childhood to teens, and also adult family relationships where old dynamics are still active.

What is systemic family therapy?

Systemic family therapy looks at the family as an interconnected system on all levels.

Instead of asking “Who started it?” or “What’s wrong with them?” we ask:

What’s happening in the relationships?
What keeps the pattern going?
What’s the emotion underneath the behaviour?
Where are the ruptures — and what repair hasn’t happened yet?

Because challenges rarely appears in isolation. It is often a signal of distress, disconnection, overwhelm, or unmet emotional needs — and when we work systemically, we create change that doesn’t rely on one person trying harder.

What happens in sessions

Family therapy is collaborative, structured, and paced.

Together, we will:

Explore what’s really going on (patterns, triggers, roles, ruptures, misunderstandings)
Make sense of how each person experiences the family — including what has gone unspoken
Support practical changes in communication, boundaries, and day-to-day interaction
Create a realistic pathway for repair, stability, and long-term change

Sometimes everyone attends together. Sometimes we begin with parents or carers first. Sometimes we include a young person later, when the conditions feel safer and more workable. We decide the structure based on what your family actually needs — not a one-size-fits-all model.

What makes my approach different

Across nearly 30 years, I’ve supported families and individuals living with complex realities — trauma, neurodivergence, mental health challenges, high conflict, breakdown, safeguarding concerns, and long-standing relational pain.

From the first session, we work to understand what’s driving the difficulty, where the system is stuck, and what needs to change and in what order.

Many families come to me after months or years of therapy that helped them understand more — but didn’t change day-to-day life. My work focuses on moving families out of crisis patterns, not just insight. I usually recommend starting with a short block of sessions so we can build momentum and assess change properly.

How to get started

The first step is a brief enquiry so I can understand what you’re facing and advise whether family therapy is the right container.

Enquire about family therapy here

If your situation feels urgent, you can add a line in your message and I’ll respond as soon as possible.

Fees & availability

Session Fees are discussed following an initial enquiry (UK residents only)
Family Therapy Sessions are online or in-person in Edinburgh (depending on your location/availability)

If you’re a professional looking to refer a family, commission support, or request consultation/training, please visit or Professionals Page Here