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Sequoia Family Therapy

Individual Therapy

Relational & Family Distress

Sometimes the hardest part of life is a relationship: a strained marriage, a difficult parent, a sibling you can’t talk to, or a family that expects more than you can give. And sometimes the other person isn’t willing or able to come to therapy.

You can still work on it. Relationships are systems, and when one person starts responding differently, the pattern around them starts to shift.

What it can look like

  • You feel anxious or on edge around a partner or family member
  • You keep falling into the same role in your family
  • Family expectations and your own needs pull in different directions
  • You want a relationship to change, but the other person won’t come to therapy
  • Old family patterns show up in your current relationships
  • Setting boundaries feels impossible or brings on guilt

How we work on it

We look at two sides of what you’re going through: what happens between you and the people in your life, and what happens inside you when those relationships get hard. Both shape how you feel, and both can change.

Together we trace the patterns in your closest relationships and the roles you took on in your family growing up. We also make sense of your own reactions: the feelings that come up, the thoughts that follow, and what you need in those moments.

Using Emotionally Focused Therapy, we slow down the moments that hurt most. As you understand yourself and your relationships more clearly, you can respond in ways that protect your wellbeing and give those relationships room to change. If it would help, we can also talk about bringing a partner or family member into some sessions.

Approaches we use

  • Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)
  • Systemic family therapy

More in individual therapy

Other focus areas

All about individual therapy

Wondering if this fits what you’re going through?

A free 15-minute consultation is a good place to ask. We’ll talk about what’s going on and whether we’re a good fit.