You may or may not be familiar with the term “family of origin” as it relates to therapy. When it comes to understanding how you function emotionally and/or in your relationships, it’s an important term to get familiar with. Family or origin work is basically the process of exploring your historical relational experiences to understand how you function. As a therapist myself, this the way I would describe it in more detail:
Family of origin work is the process of removing the obstacles that block you emotionally and/or in your relationships. By understanding your relational history, you are better able to understand the narrative you created about yourself, others and the world around you. If the stories (or beliefs) you have been carrying are inaccurate, this has probably not been helpful. The goals are to understand and heal these wounds, shift your narrative and get unstuck.”
A range of emotional and relational issues are connected to one’s family of origin experiences with parents, primary care-givers and/or families in general, as well as past trauma. Anxiety, depression, anger, fear and recurrent relationship problems are often tangled up in these unresolved issues. Our early experiences help shape the narratives we carry about ourselves, our “stories” or core beliefs about who we are, whether we can safely rely on others, etc. I never cease to be amazed by the ways people cope with adversity. However, sometimes the survival adaptations that…
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