How to Coach Yourself and Others Coaching Families | Page 188

Stages of Family Therapy Stage 1: Making Contact ￿ ￿Reach out to every family member and affirm each one’s individual worth ￿￿ Establish trust with and gain acceptance of the family ￿ ￿Ask questions and observe family process and dynamics ￿ ￿Offer hypotheses based on therapist observations (in a nonjudgmental manner) and check out observations with the family ￿￿ Create an aura of hope and encourage positive energy within the family ￿ ￿Create a readiness for change ￿ ￿Develop an assessment plan early to gain the confidence of the family ￿ ￿Make an informal working contract (agreement) with the family Stage 2: Disturbing the Status Quo ￿￿ Develop awareness of communication roles and patterns through experience ￿ ￿Create new understanding in family members through new or increased awareness ￿ ￿Disturb the status quo and challenge the family’s homeostasis ￿ ￿Move the family to reveal protected or defended areas Stage 3: Integration of New Skills ￿ ￿Re-create an aura of hope and a willingness to do things in a different or new way ￿ ￿Have family members express and apply these new understandings through experiences within the session ￿￿ Have family members use the new behaviors outside the therapy session ￿ ￿Help the family understand what happened in the “chaos stage” for enhanced learning 188