.png)
Elise Quiggins, MA, LMFTA
Systemic Therapy & Support Groups
What is Marriage & Family Therapy?
Also known as "Systemic Therapy" and "Relational Therapy"
1
What is Marriage & Family Therapy (MFT)?
The way I was trained, Marriage & Family Therapy is systemic therapy. People also call it relational therapy to use more inclusive language. Systemic therapy means that I am trained in seeing not just you and your symptoms but also the relationships you're in, the societal systems acting on you, and how your symptoms are impacted by all of this. Marriage & Family Therapy is just the language used for licensing.
2
Can Marriage & Family Therapists see individual clients?
Yes! MFTs are trained in providing systemic therapy, which can be helpful to individual and relational clients.
3
How are LMFTs different from LCSWs, LMHCs, PhDs, and PsyDs?
LMFTs have to have a Master's degree (they can also have a PhD), just like LCSWs and LMHCs. However, LMFTs are trained in systemic therapy, while LCSWs and LMHCs are trained more in the social work and medical models, respectively. PhDs and PsyDs have a doctorate and may or may not have training in systemic therapy, depending on their program.
4
Can Marriage & Family Therapists prescribe medication?
Usually, no. Marriage & Family Therapists can only prescribe medication if they have another credential, such as ARNP, DO, or MD that allows them to prescribe medication.
Systemic Therapy Philosophy
Where it came from: Marriage & Family Therapy was created in reaction to the individual/medical model of providing psychotherapy. Therapists saw that the medical model wasn't working for a lot of people and, in some cases, caused more harm than good. The medical model assumes that the clients are solely responsible for their problems. In the medical model, someone's symptoms are theoretically easily treated with very targeted interventions and medication.
​
How we're trained: Systemic therapy takes a much broader view. While people working in the medical model will likely see your symptoms in a vacuum, and they may assume your symptoms are all bad, we see your symptoms as being a logical result of living in stressful times and oppressive systems. We may appreciate how your symptoms are trying to protect you -- while also gently inviting those symptoms to shift so you and the people who love you can feel better.
​
How it can help: By working from a systemic perspective that sees you, your relationships, and the societal systems that impact you, MFTs may provide treatment on deeper levels that can produce more lasting results.