Counseling in Relationships: Insights for Helping Families Develop Healthy Connections

by Vicki Enns (Editor)

Healthy connections in family relationships are central to human wellness and resilience. When people feel a strong sense of belonging, they are more prepared to manage life s challenges. As helpers and counselors, we are better able to support growth and change in those we work with by considering the bigger picture of their interactions and recognizing the patterns of emotions, beliefs, and behaviors that promote and constrain their connections.

This book explores guiding principles for working effectively with families. Authors address relationship dynamics including those among parents and teens, couples, and adoptive, blended, and single parent families. Broader themes related to intergenerational trauma, race, and systemic oppression are also considered.

Each author shares stories and insights drawn from their personal experiences and research. Building on the core themes of attachment, relational resilience, and cultural diversity, the strategies they offer will guide helpers in facilitating healthy connections within relationships.

Learn how to support a variety of family relationships including:

Parent and Teen Relationships

Couple Relationships

Immigrant and Refugee Families

Single Parent Families

Blended Families

Engaging Fathers

Adoptive Families

Foster Families

Purposeful Single Parenting

Indigenous Insights for All Counselors

367 pages, Paperback

Published January 11, 2021

About the author

Vicki is the former Clinical Director of the Crisis & Trauma Resource Institute (CTRI), which is a leading provider of professional development training. She is also the editor and a contributing author of the following books from CTRI:
-Counseling Insights
-Counseling in Relationships
-Gratitude & Grit
-Self-Care Transformed

Vicki has also written many of our training materials, including those on the topics of anxiety, trauma, mindfulness, and ethics.

In addition to her work with CTRI, Vicki has a private practice where she specializes in the areas of relationship health and trauma recovery. She holds a Master of Marriage and Family Therapy degree and is an approved supervisor with the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy and the Canadian Association of Marriage and Family Therapists.

Vicki believes that it is essential for helpers to continue learning and developing their self-awareness alongside evolving clinical skills. She regularly gives presentations in the areas of trauma, mental health, and counseling, and creates a learning atmosphere that embraces diversity in personal identity, skills, and cultural perspectives.

Reviews

[Traceys · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting read. I personally think it's more aimed at someone training to be a counselor. That being said I still found some soundbites to take away and use in my life and thought processes when communicating with others.

[Jason Frasca · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very dense read, but with many productive concepts and discussions regarding all the intricacies and potential family and couple relationship models. It works to improve communication, understanding, and acceptance, in effort to move forward, learn, and improve relationship dynamics.

Each section is written by an expert in that particular field and/or subset. I love the case applications and break downs throughout discussing ways to refocus and reframe on the challenges of each point of view, keeping the readers focused on the key concepts.

This is clearly well done, from it's basic inception and organization, through its writing and final product. The way it is organized empowers each author to state their perspective and arguments. The target audience seems to be Canadian therapists, but as an American health professional interested in behavioral health topics, I was still able to grasp the concepts and apply them myself. The discussions can also be extrapolated to personal relationships by readers.

This is quite the educational book. It could easily be broken into smaller subsets, but its cohesion as a book is paramount, and this will be one I refer back to often! Buy this!

[Crystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Canadian Counseling

This book highlights the various types of families and the struggles they face. Different contributors that specialize in the various types of family analyze common problems as use case studies and questions to help the patients and reader to figure out how to fix the problems. Overall, the insight and thought was amazing. I enjoyed looking at things with a different perspective as well as challenging previously held thoughts and ideals.
For me, the first chapter needs rewritten by anyone else. That made me want to give up on this book. Also, the chapters are repetitive and drag on unnecessarily.
#GoodreadsGiveaway

[Shari · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent resource for those who are working with families in a helping role. I appreciate the trauma-informed approach each author takes and the variety of family relationships that are represented.

[Abby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book to add to my counseling library. There aren't many books out there from the Relational Cultural perspective. As a counselor who works from this theory, this book was very helpful. Various relationship types are covered, case examples provided, and specific tips are included.

[Amy Ferris · Rating 5 out of 5]

An accessible easy read that guides you through a client-centered approach. An excellent tool for any counselor's toolbox.

[Crystal Robertson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not a counselor, but I do work in ABA therapy and thought this information would be valuable in communication with parents and caretakers. The insights about family connections, race, and gender allow for more understanding and knowledge to establish and maintain relationships.