Family Therapy Services
The Family Center is a licensed Department of Public Health mental health clinic,
serving hundreds of families each year. Our Family Therapy Services engage the entire
family in therapy to intervene in unhealthy patterns of behavior and strengthen
family relationships.
"You feel welcome there! From the person at the front desk to the counselors: no
one judged me!"
-Participant Testimonial
We believe that the family is the agent of change for individuals and that family members
can help one another heal. Our Family Therapy Services engage the entire family
in therapy in order to change unhealthy patterns and strengthen family relationships.
Our family therapy focuses on strengths rather than pathology, and on relationships
within the family rather than on individual members. Our goal is to help families
overcome distress by replacing habits that isolate members from one another with
those that provide hope, support and connection. Recognizing that families sometimes
need more than therapy, we also place strong emphasis on providing a wide range
of supportive services to families in our care.
Please click here for a PDF of our Family Therapy Services brochure:
in English
in Haitian Creole
in Spanish
in English
in Haitian Creole
in Spanish
Our Family Violence Intervention Approach
Domestic violence impacts all family members, including those who are not direct
targets of the assault. Victims and witnesses experience a wide range of emotions,
including fear, anxiety, depression, anger, and despair; these emotions manifest
in nightmares and can cause the individual poor health. The goal of our family violence
intervention approach is to first assure that the non-offending partner and the
children are safe, then to help them regain self-confidence and mutual respect so
that hope rather than fear guides their days. Once the family is physically safe,
the hard work of restoring battered psyches begins. Our approach employs strategies
such as family, couples, and individual therapy; parent-child groups; and advocacy.
The flexibility of the program enables staff to engage all members of the family
while maintaining safety.
Transitions is a 12-week domestic violence recovery group designed to help non-offending parents and their children rebuild relationships damaged by family violence. Transitions was developed by The Family Center to fill a void in services for families healing from the effects of domestic violence. The negative effects of domestic violence on parenting are well-documented, but rarely directly addressed. Many programs provide separate group supports for parents and children with a focus on individual healing. Transitions is unique in that it provides group support for non-offending parents and their children together, with the focus on family healing.
Family Support Programs
Family Support Programs compliment The Family Center's clinical services with programs
that help families develop the skills and find the resources they need to succeed.
Hundreds of families each year benefit from our Family Support Programs.
The Parenting JourneyTM
"I am more aware of how my life since childhood has affected me. I am also more
patient with myself and that helps me be more aware and patient with my children.
I feel like I have the tools to be a more effective parent and productive person"
-Parenting Journey Participant
Instead of focusing on child development and disciplinary techniques, our Parenting
Journey series is based on family systems concepts and focuses on the parents'
relationship with their children, with others, and with their personal histories.
We believe that our Parenting Journey curriculum has an integral role in helping
distressed parents begin to break destructive patterns and gain self-awareness.
The Parenting JourneyTM is our unique parent education and support group
designed to help parents increase their self-care practices, raise awareness of
the past and present factors that influence their parenting styles, enhance their
parenting skills, and utilize their strengths to build nurturing family relationships.
The Parenting Journey starts from the premise that parents who were never nurtured
themselves may have a hard time nurturing their children. Rather than teach parenting
skills didactically, through lectures and presentations, The Parenting Journey works
through example by giving parents the nurturing they may have missed. Over meals
in a warm and supportive environment, parents are encouraged to care for themselves
and each other while participating in a series of experiential exercises and activities.
The Parenting JourneyTM Part II
Parents who complete The Parenting JourneyTM Part I may choose to participate
in The Parenting JourneyTM Part II, our 12-week follow-up program that
offers parents an opportunity to utilize the skills and new insights they gained
in The Parenting JourneyTM Part I. As the Journey continues, parents
re-direct their focus away from their past experiences of being parented (Parenting
Journey Part I) and begin to proactively set goals and make plans for themselves
and their family's futures. At the end of Parenting JourneyTM Part II,
parents leave with a clear plan that includes steps necessary to reach their personal
goals. Parents also leave with a better understanding of how their past and current
actions impact and affect their children.
For information regarding ongoing groups, including groups conducted in other languages, see Class and Event Calendar or call 617-628-8815.
For information regarding ongoing groups, including groups conducted in other languages, see Class and Event Calendar or call 617-628-8815.
"In my Parenting in America group, we shared our experiences as immigrant parents
and I now feel more open about seeking help for myself and my family. I've learned
that no one has the right to treat me and my children with disrespect."
-Parenting in America Participant
Immigrant families face many unique pressures. They are often isolated from family
and friends and find it difficult to fully integrate into their new communities
due to cultural and linguistic barriers. Children frequently adapt to the new culture
more swiftly than their parents. They become the bridge between family and community,
a role reversal that can undermine parental authority. Parenting in America offers
groups for immigrant families in their own languages that help these families counter
isolation, discover strengths, and develop strategies for meeting the challenges
before them.
For information on current groups, see Class and Event Calendar or call 617-628-8815.
For information on current groups, see Class and Event Calendar or call 617-628-8815.
Providers please click here for a PDF of our:
Parenting in America Haitian flyer
Parenting in America Latino flyer
Parenting in America Haitian flyer
Parenting in America Latino flyer
When parents graduate from any of our Family Support groups, they are inevitably
excited about what they have learned about themselves and their families; they have
made friends, they have felt cared for and learned how to better care for themselves
and their families. They usually have experienced some kind of transformation, or
at least the opening up of some ideas and beliefs which had been closed to them.
They also generally feel more hopeful and can begin to visualize new possibilities
for their lives. They emerge from any one of the Parenting Journey groups ready
for a next step.
We recognize that 12 weeks, or even 24 weeks, of any program will not sustain a
vulnerable parent, or any parent for that matter, without further supports. To address
this need, The Family Center offers support groups, skill-building opportunities
and Family Fun Nights throughout the year. We collaborate with community partners
in order to foster a continuity of support for families coming out of our Family
Support Groups.
Support Groups
We have Support Groups available to enable families to maintain the sense of community
established within their respective groups or to offer a point of entry into services
at The Family Center. Support Groups are organized around a common desire for members
to explore and attain goals, while connecting over common interests and activities.
Several of the Support Groups we offer include: Parenting Support Group (drop-in
groups where participants can receive support and explore and receive guidance on
issues of parenting and their own personal development), a Haitian Fathers Support
Group (wherein Haitian men can come together to address parenting issues in the
context of their culture and gender), an Immigrant Parents Support Group (on-going
support groups for immigrant parents seeking support and guidance in raising bi-cultural
children) and a Yoga Support Group (free yoga classes offered in partnership with
Yoga Hope, a local non-profit outreach organization dedicated to establishing rehabilitative
yoga programs for underserved people in Greater Boston).
In order to attend any of these Support Groups, you must register with the Intake Coordinator. For information on current groups, see Class and Event Calendar or call 617-628-8815 to attend
In order to attend any of these Support Groups, you must register with the Intake Coordinator. For information on current groups, see Class and Event Calendar or call 617-628-8815 to attend
A family that plays together stays together. Several times each year, The Family
Center invites families to come into our building and have fun at our Family Fun
Nights. Families share a staff-served meal, play together, create together and have
the experience of enjoying one another. Families can choose from many different
activities that encourage family interaction hosted throughout our building, including:
arts and crafts, music and dance, toddler play, ping-pong, and creative writing.
For information on upcoming Family Fun Nights, see Class and Event Calendar or call 617-628-8815.
For information on upcoming Family Fun Nights, see Class and Event Calendar or call 617-628-8815.
