Family Systems

My clinical training is as a Marriage & Family Therapist, which means, at my core, I am a systems thinker. I do not believe that our mental health symptoms are only individual issues; I believe they are born out of and in response to the various systems we have been born and socialized into. Our social location, race, gender identity, and family of origin experiences directly inform and are deeply intertwined with our mental health journeys. This is the framework I bring to every client journey.

My training and education as a marriage and family therapist is in all matters of family systems. I conceptualize every problem or struggle from a systemic lens and help you effectively heal systemically as well. I specifically operate from a Narrative Therapy lens, believing much of our stuckness and consequential freedom is from the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves and the world.

I am trained in family systems (Bowenian) approaches to therapy. By examining the patterns within the family and across generations, we can bring insight into behaviors that may be holding us back. This approach is especially useful in communities of color given our desire to maintain strong multi-generational kinship networks.

Family systems therapy views disordered eating as part of a larger network of family, social, and cultural influences. Instead of focusing only on the individual, it explores how relationships, communication patterns, and environmental factors contribute to eating behaviors. Therapy helps identify unhelpful dynamics, improve support systems, and create healthier interactions. By addressing the whole system, individuals can develop more balanced relationships with food, their bodies, and others.

I've worked with families for the past 11 years and have experience with foster/adoptive, racial minority and LGBTQ families, adult children and families experiencing major life transitions.

Even people who have not studied Family Systems tend to be aware of the huge impact that our families have on who and how we are. Even if we come from a "Little House on the Prairie" type family, we carry ideas about ourselves and life that are not serving us now. A huge part of my work with clients is to methodically take a deep look at the developmental period of their lives and become more able to make choices rather than react.

There are many different parts of you that protect you, that manage internal crises, and carry the emotional damage of our past traumas. I work with you to understand your full self, create an appreciation for yourself, and work to give yourself permission to be your true self.

It can be incredibly empowering and liberating to learn about how your family's structure, patterns, and experiences (even through the generations!) are impacting the way you move through the world and your current position.

We all come from somewhere. I'm here to help you learn more about where you came from, so you can be informed about ways to overcome your present and future challenges. Many of our current challenges, insecurities and negative beliefs about ourselves elf, come from growing up. Using a person centered and family systems based approach, I'd love to help provide you with tools and insights for you to continue to grow into the most authentic version of you.

Family systems was foundational in my master's program of couple and family therapy. I use this lens in sessions to further expand the view and experience of each individual, knowing that their current and past family experiences has informed their development.

We all view the world through a certain lens. How we were raised in our family of origin affects how we view ourselves and others around us. It affects how we show up in the world and we interrupt our world. When we are aware of how the environment we grew up in affects us we can learn to grow from the ways we are living that are harmful to us or that are detrimental to our growth and fulfillment.

My background in recovery and work in a treatment setting has given me thorough knowledge and appreciation for using a family systems approach in therapy. This means I will understand you through the lens of the family you come from, how those roles, messages, rules, and experiences have helped to shape who you are, your relationships, and how to facilitate healing in these areas.

I received specific training in understanding how each member can impact a family system and have worked on balancing out a system in the best interest of each family member.

General systems theory emphasizes that a group, family, or even individual cannot be wholly explained by looking at just one part or one angle of influence. We are not simply a combination of our circumstances, the same way that it is limiting to consider a single perspective. Yams is trained in considering the intersection of identities, communities, and overall society on the issues that arise in therapy and helping you navigate that web.

Having originally trained in family therapy, I now utilize family systems therapy in an individual therapy context. How you grew up, your current or past relationships with family members, and intergenerational trauma all have a significant impact on your current functioning and mental health. Better understanding your family experiences and dynamics can help you make positive change now.

Completed additional training in family systems.

I take a collaborative, trauma iniformed, systems-based approach to therapy. I believe that each individual has the strength inside them to be successful in thier day to day relationships. We respond to stress based upon the tools we developed early in life. When we begin to notice those tools are no longer working for us, Counseling can be a safe place to begin self-exploration, honor our experiences, and begin to learn new ways to manage stress, emotions, and relationship patterns.