The family system can be our strongest source of positive identity, healthy boundaries and expectations, and resources. Families can also be sources of deep dysfunction and pain. At Muir Wood Adolescent and Family Services, we believe that family involvement is essential for success in treatment. That includes family education, peer-to-peer support, counseling, and therapy.
The Family Program at Muir Wood Adolescent and Family Services is recognized as one of the most comprehensive family systems therapy programs nationally. The Family Program consists of multiple elements including:
- Weekly individual family therapy with licensed therapists
- Multi-Family Process Groups
- Saturday Family Program
- Weekend Parent Workshop
- Four Parent Support Webinars per Week
- 16-week Curriculum-Based Parent Coaching and Aftercare Support facilitated by a licensed therapist (post-discharge)
- Parent-specific Alumni Meeting Weekly (post-discharge)
Between the individual family therapy, weekly phone consultations with licensed therapists, our comprehensive weekend Family Programming, and weekly parent webinars, parents are on average involved in treatment at Muir Wood Adolescent and Family Services for eight to ten hours each week.
Weekly Individual Family Therapy
Individual family therapy sessions are scheduled with the assigned family therapist with the goal of meeting on campus weekly. However, if this is not Individual family therapy sessions are scheduled with the assigned family therapist with the goal of meeting on campus weekly. However, if this is not possible, individual family therapy via virtual sessions are conducted. Often, virtual sessions can be more effective, as teens feel safe to disclose sensitive underlying issues without their parents present in the same room.
Multi-Family Group Therapy
Facilitated by our team of licensed therapists, the multi-family process group compliments the work parents do while engaged in individual family therapy. It provides a platform for parents to interact with other families who have similar experiences allowing for shared perspective, which often leads to a better understanding and acceptance of their own struggles. In multi-family group therapy sessions, it is illustrated that those struggling are not alone, that they are within a shared community of families that can process and learn from one another, and insight one family achieves in a session is witnessed by and shared with the other participating families.
Saturday Family Program
(Please note: For purposes of COVID safety, the Saturday Family Program is temporarily transitioned to virtual visits scheduled throughout the week.) Our weekly Saturday Family Program is divided into two distinct sessions. In the morning session, families interact with nationally respected adolescent treatment experts who serve as Muir Wood Adolescent and Family Services guest lecturers. These lecturers include esteemed physicians and board-certified addiction treatment specialists, psychologists, therapists, educators, and authors. Topics include:
- Codependency and attachment
- The disease concept and neurobiology of addiction
- Conflict resolution and effective communication techniques
- Effective parenting
- Relapse prevention and preparedness
- Understanding 12-Step recovery
- Family reunification
- Helping teens make the right choices
*Paused due to COVID-19 Pandemic, will resume when safe to gather in large groups.
Two-Day Weekend Parent Workshop
This two-day parent-only program is part of a systems approach to strengthen families of teens in trouble. The primary objectives of this workshop is the exploration of co-dependency as the underlying problem that drives problematic parent-child interactions, promoting and helping families embrace ‘family recovery’ rather than ‘child recovery’ as a solution, demonstrating through interactive experiences how family recovery can transform This two-day parent-only program is part of a systems approach to strengthening families whose teens are in trouble. The primary objectives of this workshop are the exploration of codependency as the underlying problem that drives problematic parent-child interactions, promoting and helping families embrace ‘family recovery’ rather than ‘child recovery’ as a solution, demonstrating through interactive experiences how family recovery can transform dialogue and interactions, reducing shame by depathologizing parents interactions with their children, and encouraging parents to commit to a shift from control-based parenting to attachment-based parenting. At its core, this two-day parent program is about how parents can maximize their influence, work with the power of choice that their children have, and parent from a sense of their own legitimate authority in a positive, invitational way.
Weekly Parent Support Webinars
Each week, parents are encouraged to meet via video conference to offer one another peer support and connection.
These weekly parent-to-parent video calls are facilitated by staff. The topics discussed are flexible and responsive to the specific needs of attending parents. In these weekly calls, families find community, brainstorm, share ideas and resources, and explore ongoing solutions to family mental health and addiction recovery challenges.
The parent community continues to gather strength, momentum, and hope post-treatment, and continues on post-graduation through a private, online alumni meeting for parents and the 16-week parent coaching and aftercare support program.
16-week Parent Coaching and Aftercare Support – Post Discharge (Optional)
Led by the licensed therapist who facilitates the two-day weekend parent-only workshop, this weekly 90-minute online parent coaching class is optional and available to parents post-discharge. The foundation of this 16-week online coaching program allows for a continued discussion of potential challenges, determining strategies for dealing with and responding to specific dynamics in the family while emphasizing the use of the many tools developed in residential treatment to manage relationships and emotions, the exploration of conflicts and identification of solutions, with the goal of ultimately providing the support parents need to remain on track with their child’s individualized recovery plan post-discharge.
Family System Therapy and Support
