Cary Terra, LMFT

Terra Therapy offers family therapy for all kinds of families.  Services include assisting children and adults navigate common struggles such as bereavement, death and dying, divorce, separation, aspergers, and blended family arrangements.

Cary Terra, LMFT can help your family set and reach goals, set boundaries and learn to have fun together through solution focused family therapy techniques and strategic family therapy.  Communication skills role playing and facilitated family discussions on topics of conflict can help families address feelings and change in constructive healthy ways.

How does family therapy for blended families work?

Family therapy is a special form of psychotherapy that focuses on changes within a family, and recognizes that family relationships have an impact on the feelings, behavior and psychological adjustment of every family member. Instead of meeting with one individual, all or most family members are involved in the therapy process. In blended families, this may include stepparents, step-siblings and half-siblings. When children in blended families have adjustment problems, it may be helpful for all the parents and stepparents to work together in family therapy. This depends on the ability of the divorced parents to work together to help their children resolve psychological problems. Many divorced couples struggle with focusing on their children's adjustment issues, and rehash the couple conflicts in functional family therapy sessions.  Such behavior is not productive, and helps determine who will be included in the psychodynamic family therapy process, or how it needs to proceed. 

How do I know if my whole family should come in?

Cary Terra specializes in identifying family patterns which contribute to adjustment problems in children and adults.  Did you know that family therapy is most frequently the treatment of choice when children or adolescents are identified as having psychological problems?

Structural family therapy is sometimes used when an adult family member has significant psychological problems, especially when those problems impact other family members. For example, a parent with chronic depression might benefit from family therapy to address the impact of their problem on family relationships, while also receiving individual psychotherapy to directly address their personal change issues.

With younger children, psychologists will often combine individual, parent, and family therapy sessions.  The parents may be seen to focus on behavior control, discipline procedures and "trouble shooting" specific behavioral problems. The child may be seen to focus on self-control issues, self-esteem, and to teach social skills and coping skills. The family therapy sessions will focus on all members having input when identifying problems and resolving them.  Children are given support in voicing their issues to parents, and siblings are allowed to express opinions.  Frequently, the family therapy sessions result in problems being identified in the other siblings, rather than focusing only on the behavior of one child.  This not only helps the family make needed changes, it is essential in helping the identified problem-child rebuild self-esteem.
If you are concerned about your family, please call for a free phone consultation. 

Where are services provided?

Terra Therapy provides services in two convenient locations on Bainbridge Island and in Seattle.
Family Therapy Bainbridge Island
Family therapy Kirkland
Family therapy greater Seattle
Family therapy west Seattle
Family therapy Bellevue
Family Therapy Poulsbo
Family Therapy Redmond
Family Therapy Kitsap County
Family Therapy King County