Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT)
A marriage and family therapist provides assessment and treatment of affective, cognitive or behavioral disorders that disrupt family relationships, including marital/couple, parent-child, pre-marital and other relationships. They can work collaboratively with primary care physicians, psychiatrists, and other medical professionals to provide quality care. For more information regarding marriage and family therapists go to: http://www.op.nysed.gov/mftbroch.htm
Unlike other forms of therapy, practitioners are trained in individual psychotherapy and family systems to assess and treat mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders. All things are embedded within multi-dimensional systems. All is effected by that system, and all effects the entire system. This is a unique concept embraced by marriage and family therapists and is the principle for varying theoretical approaches to this branch of psychotherapy. Marriage and family therapists consider gender, culture, and religious orientation. They pay close attention to family constelation, structure, birth order, family patterns, roles, transitions, and losses.
Singles, couples, and families
Regardless of one’s relationship/marital status, marriage and family therapy can benefit single individuals, partnered/married couples, families (single-parent, blended families, mature relationships).