What Is a Marriage and Family Therapist?

Every couple and family as a unit faces its own unique set of problems which is why they very often seek family counseling from a marriage and family therapist. A family therapist is a trained professional who primarily and essentially deals with interpersonal and intrapersonal issues that draw a wedge between families and couples.

Family counseling is a growing field - the demand of which is now at an all-time high and many individuals are now actively pursuing it as a career. If you too are interested in this career field then getting a better idea of what a family therapist does is, where they work and what kind of perks they earn is essential. Here's a brief overview about the profession.

What does a marriage and family therapist do?

Within a unit, a marriage and family therapist assess, treats and diagnoses psychological problems, fallouts, mental illnesses and other psychological distresses. To treat these problems, a family therapist offers counseling services in areas like relationship counseling, premarital counseling, child counseling, divorce counseling etc. Some of the most common tasks performed by a family therapist are:

·         Diagnosing and treating mental health problems

·         Offering psychotherapy to couples, families and individuals

·         Chalking out treatment plans

·         Setting goals to improve communication skills

·         Making a detailed report about a client's life history

·         Interviewing, observing, discussing and assessing

A therapist also needs to maintain a log and record of their clients' progress notes as well as have a detailed journal about the diagnoses, evaluation and recommended treatment plans - implemented as well as planned for the future.

You may wonder what makes a marriage and family therapist different from other kinds of therapists. The primary difference is that even though all therapists offer psychotherapy for a myriad of mental health issues, a therapist more specifically addresses and understands a family's dynamic and how the problems within a family impact its members psychological health as well as how individual problems affect the family. Some of the most common problems identified are self-esteem problems, anxiety, depression, anger, grief, loss, self-harm, addiction and more.

Where does a marriage and family therapist work?

There are multiple different employment niches where family therapists fit in terms of mental health services - individual and family care services, local and state hospitals, outpatient and inpatient care centres, mental health centres and other mental health service centres are a few of such niches. They may also practice individually at private clinics or in coordination with psychiatrists. Marriage and family therapists ordinarily dedicated 40-50 minutes per client, a couple of times a week, depending on the nature and intensity of problem and as well as the recommended treatment plan.

Other requirements

The minimum requirement to be a marriage and family therapist entails a master's degree and two years of training in the field and also a license to practice in the state after clearing the necessary requirements. Additionally, it is also important to have skills like:

·         Interpersonal skills

·         Problem-solving skills

·         Ability to build trust amongst clients

·         Good organizational skills

·         Good communication skills

·         Ability to make clients comfortable

·         Technological fluency

·         Language fluency

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