We have a new home. And with it, all the attendant physical and emotional turmoil of moving at my age. I am surrounded by boxes, and tormented by the seemingly endless decisions to “keep” or “let go.” (Do I really still need the hand written notes from my doctoral dissertation? Apparently, yes, I do). One of the indelible memories of this move is the 2022 World Series playing in the background as we packed. A wonderful diversion from the chaos, our …
Category: ethnicity
Being a systemic therapist requires ongoing analysis of the ways in which power dynamics organize and shape the life-long relational dances in couples and families. Experiences of privilege and marginalization in the cultural landscape are critical to the daily lived experience of our clients, and impact their relationships in profound ways. In working with our Psychiatry residents at Penn, I welcome writing that fosters clarity about the influence of these complex, often silenced, aspects of power. Once again, my friend …
I’m so pleased to share this recently published book by my friend and colleague, Dr. Saliha Bava, and her partner, Mark Greene. Although we might agree in theory that parenting is indeed a relational endeavor, our language belies this perspective. For example, we describe the child as “oppositional defiant” as though she existed in a relational vacuum, without that ‘other’ person she must oppose. Diagnostic criteria focuses on the individual and obscures the parts of the relational system that promote imbalance …
CCAF Clinical director, Jacqueline Hudak, will present on a panel about “The Changing Family” during Penn Spectrum Weekend. Held during alumni weekend, Penn Spectrum “brings together alumni for dialogue centered on issues of cultural identity. We welcome alumni and allies from all backgrounds as well as current Penn undergraduate and graduate students. The conference focuses on issues pertinent to the Black, Latinx, Native, Asian, and LGBTQ alumni and student communities.” For a full schedule of events, check out the link here. …
Join us for the next CPSP “Community Psychiatry Forum*” In Collaboration with The American Association of Community Psychiatrists Engaging Family Supports Learning Objectives – Participants will be better able to: Identify strategies and barriers to engage family members as supportive members of recovery team Enable people in recovery to identify and connect with potential sources of support in the community Describe issues commonly concerning family members and other natural supports and potential approaches for addressing them CME: You can …
The Center for Couples and Adult Families extends a warm welcome to Michelle Jackson, a seasoned Couple and Family therapist who joined our Clinical Faculty last month. There are many reasons I’m thrilled to have Ms. Jackson aboard, not the least of which is our ability to serve more couples and families at CCAF. Her arrival is evidence of our growth; clearly the word is out that there is couple and family therapy available at Penn. Ms. Jackson’s sensitivity to …
An article by my friend and colleague Laurie Charles. We are board members of The American Family Therapy Academy; her work with families around the world informs and expands my thinking about health across the lifespan. Our psychiatry residents will also benefit from her experience as they move on to practice psychiatry in the US and around the world. …
Research findings from a team at Emory University Medical School provide evidence of “transgenerational epigenetic inheritance” – that environment can affect an individual’s genetics and then be passed on. As a family therapist I have intuited this often in my consulting room. There are times when a young adult with severe sadness sits with me, and I can sense that the sorrow is somehow lager that she is; it is too big a sorrow for someone that age. When together …
Last month, CCAF faculty, residents and fellows were treated to a wonderful lecture by family psychiatrist Dr. Geri Fox. “Gear Shifts and Spirals” was an interactive discussion of video taken by Dr. Fox of her own family filmed over 25 years. Dr. Fox began her filming long before the now ubiquitous culture of self documentation. She is a pioneer ethnographer, recording the turning points and challenges of everyday family life through the lens of her video camera. She …
Social-emotional relationship therapy offers guidelines for how to address issues of power, such as class, race, gender and sexual orientation. Read about this in the new AFTA Springer Series Brief: Socio-Emotional Relationship Therapy: Bridging Emotion, Societal Context, and Couple Interaction. AFTA members can find the link on the AFTA home page: Home And here is a wonderful blog post about the revolutionary potential of this model: http://familytherapyblog.com/2015/03/30/new-couples-therapy-approach-centers-societal-context-and-mutual-support/ …
