May / June 2023 Volume 22, No. 3

Essential Considerations: Medical Family Therapists’ Approach with Native Americans

It is a privilege to work as a medical family therapist (MedFT) at the Oklahoma City Indian Clinic. “Medical family therapy is a form of professional practice that uses the biopsychosocial model and systemic family therapy principles in the collaborative treatment of individuals and families dealing with medical problems” (McDaniel, 2014, p. 9). Additionally, research [...]

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May / June 2023 Volume 22, No. 3

Suffering In Silence: The Invisible Minority and How MFTs Can Help

As an MFT, you arrive in your office and begin an intake session with a new client. You see a woman in front of you. She tells you that she is in a relationship and feels that she doesn’t have much power in it. She tells you that she has made compromises in her relationship, [...]

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May / June 2023 Volume 22, No. 3

Native American Behavioral Health Challenges

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the current total population of Native Americans in the United States is 6.79 million, about 2.09% of the population (2023). There are about 574 federally recognized Native American tribes in the United States (World Population Review, 2023). Agencies like the U.S. Indian Health Service (IHS) aim for maximum tribal [...]

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March / April 2023 Volume 22, No. 2

Helping Survivors of Suicide

Debra and Keith* were back in my office, still trying to decide what to do. She was highly distressed over their marriage; he was equally confused about her distress. After several agonizing months of back-and-forth in both individual and marital therapy, she concluded the only way to move forward was alone. The reasons she provided [...]

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March / April 2023 Volume 22, No. 2

Coping with the Loss of a Client

Grief and loss can be a challenging topic to discuss for most; words do not bring back the loved one who was lost. Those who surround you may be extra cautious not to bring up memories or topics for fear of triggering you or causing you emotional pain. This, in turn, creates a vicious cycle [...]

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March / April 2023 Volume 22, No. 2

How MFTs Can Support Transnationals Through Their Grief Process

Transnationalism Immigration is a significant life change that can bring about various emotional challenges, including grief and loss (Falicov, 2019). It can also complicate the grief process when a loss occurs post-immigration (Falicov, 2019). As a result, marriage and family therapists (MFTs) can play a critical role in helping immigrants navigate these emotional challenges. MFTs [...]

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March / April 2023 Volume 22, No. 2

Children’s Reactions to Death

At some point in time in our lives, we experience the loss of loved ones. Whether that be parents, aunts and uncles, grandparents, friends, and/or others about whom we care. Commonly, the perception is that these individuals will pass when we are adults; it is challenging to fathom that children will experience death before they [...]

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January / February 2023 Volume 22, No. 1

Understanding the Role of Humor in Family Therapy

From the inception of the field, family therapists have developed creative ways of integrating humor into their work. This is largely because humor invites clients to engage with seemingly incongruous ideas in constructive ways. However, the pros and cons of using humor in psychotherapy are not always obvious, and clinicians would benefit from a deeper [...]

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January / February 2023 Volume 22, No. 1

In Praise of Lightening Up

How does one justify to one’s spouse packing a box of condoms for an upcoming solo business trip? I don’t know, and neither did Frank. Frank did, however, discover that if “I’m not sure how those got in there” doesn’t soothe a dubious spouse, a panicked “well, just in case” will help one’s cause even [...]

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November / December 2022 Volume 21, No.6

Wellness Series Part 1 – Don’t Sleep on it: An Urgent Call for MFTs to Attend to Sleep in Therapy

The global COVID-19 pandemic, political uncertainty, and racial tension over the last few years has undoubtedly taken a toll on our psychological, physical, and social relationships. One of the more impactful and important mechanisms through which this manifests is through sleep quality, particularly poorer sleep. Indeed, both the global/national events (e.g., Targa et al., 2021) [...]

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