Oftentimes, families enter therapy by way of one child--the identified patient. In this scenario, parents often expect their child to participate in therapy alone, which goes against the foundation of systemic treatment. Inviting families to, and working with them in, therapy has been the topic of this three article series.

In parts one and two, you learned how to engage every member of the family, stay mindful of your triggers, support children's voices in therapy, and partner with parents and colleagues. Now, in part three, I focus on your ongoing tasks in systemic treatment, which will lead to the final guideline for working with children in family therapy (guideline number six).

In the following post, I cover guidelines 4-6 for working with children in family therapy, as well as what each guideline contributes to the therapeutic process. To read part one of this series, click here.

Working with children in family therapy is a challenging and exciting process that elicits therapists' creativity. It also has the potential to generate anxiety and lead us to make decisions out of fear rather than faith in our client families.

This article is the first in a series on working with children in family therapy, during which I'll cover six general guidelines for working with families. You'll learn how to engage every member of the family, stay mindful of your triggers, support children's voices in therapy, and more.