Family Therapy Programs
Family Therapy Programs are an essential component of the therapeutic experience at SUWS of the Carolinas. While the students who enroll with us have individual issues that they need to work on, our family programs provide the ideal opportunity to identify and address issues related to interpersonal relationships, communication, and other family-wide challenges.
In addition to participating in weekly phone calls with their child’s therapist, parents of SUWS of the Carolinas students are also invited to our campus for two family programs – a two-day family workshop at the mid-point of the student’s enrollment, and the “Trail’s End” sessions that mark the completion of the student’s time with us. All family programs at SUWS of the Carolinas are designed to improve family relationships, devise strategies for overcoming family-related challenges, and prepare students and their parents for a successful return home after graduation.
Because SUWS of the Carolinas admits students on a rolling enrollment basis, we offer family programs fairly regularly. Our two-day parent workshops are usually held twice each month, and of course the Trail’s End session is scheduled whenever students have completed their SUWS experience and are ready to return home or move to a longer-term residential program.
Family programs can cover a wide range of topics, but at their core they are designed to achieve one essential objective: to help family members communicate more effectively with each other. Effective family communication can help resolve small problems before they become major crises, and can preclude the development of intra-family disputes. On the other side of the proverbial coin, a lack of effective family communication can undermine even the most concerted efforts to achieve a more harmonious environment within the home.
At SUWS of the Carolinas, our family programs bring parents and students together with experienced and dedicated professionals who are able to help the family members bridge the gaps that have previously prevented them from functioning as a productive unit. By conducting our family programs at the mid-point of a student’s time with us, our Therapeutic Programs and counselors are also able to use these sessions to gauge the progress that students and parents have made; to identify issues that remain problematic; and to work with all participants afterward to process the issues that were raised during the two-day workshops.
At the end of a student’s enrollment at SUWS of the Carolinas, the Trail’s End program serves two purposes: to celebrate the achievement that the student has made by successfully completing our program, and to prepare both parents and students for the challenges that they will face upon their return home. All parents complete a one-day workshop to prepare them to have a successful reunion with their child, and to equip them with skills and strategies to support their child’s continued healthy development upon returning home.
Parents and students may have completed a number of family programs prior to enrolling in SUWS of the Carolinas, and many will continue to participate in (and, in some cases, to lead) family programs after they have completed their SUWS experience. Regardless of where or when our families participate in family programs, we are confident that the assistance they receive at SUWS of the Carolinas will provide them with a strong foundation upon which to build a productive future as individuals and as members of a healthy family.
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