Family therapy at Wellness Hills in Chester, NJ is clinician-led and integrated into PHP, IOP, and outpatient care to strengthen communication and support recovery.
When a family member is struggling with their mental health, the entire system often feels the strain. Family therapy at Wellness Hills in Chester, NJ, is a structured, clinical process integrated directly into our Partial Hospitalization (PHP), Intensive Outpatient (IOP), and Outpatient programs. It focuses on changing the relational and communication patterns at home that can unintentionally keep an individual’s symptoms stuck, while building a practical support plan for recovery.
Please call our confidential admissions line at 855-560-5523 regarding options for therapy with your family members suffering from DSM-5 mental health conditions, such as depression, anxiety, trauma/PTSD, as well as bipolar disorder, and verify whether your NJ insurance includes family sessions as part of treatment.
How a family talks and acts together can either help a member heal or accidentally make a situation worse during a mental health crisis.
Families naturally adjust around symptoms to reduce immediate pain. It’s a survival instinct. But over time, these adaptations can unintentionally reinforce the very distress someone battling a mental illness may be trying to escape.
Common signs include:
These patterns aren’t always about fault. A licensed clinician can help assess and guide the family safely through the healing process.
Family therapy can help the family feel hopeful and supported as everybody works toward positive change.
Sessions may work toward:
Progress is measured by stability, consistency, and reduced strain
Confidentiality in family therapy is often a top priority. Specific individuals who can be included in sessions include:
Key considerations for inclusion:
A licensed clinician determines who should be involved and when, with attention to safety and confidentiality.
Sometimes family strain crosses into crisis territory. Family therapy is not the first step if safety is at risk.
If you or a loved one is in immediate danger, call 911. If you’re experiencing emotional distress or thoughts of self-harm, call or text 988 for 24/7 support.
Your 4-point safety checklist if someone is at risk:
Family therapy may not be appropriate until safety and stabilization are in place, such as when:
In these cases, our clinical team, led by Leigh Rasmussen, LPC, LCADC, would prioritize individual stabilization and safety planning. Family therapy would be introduced as a later component of step-down planning when clinically indicated.
Sessions draw from established, clinically supported methods, tailored to the treatment plan.
Family Systems Therapy (FST) can provide a structured environment where families can practice concrete skills to replace dysfunctional patterns with healthy interactions. This work goes beyond “talking it out.” Therapists attempt to help families:
Find out your personal coverage & options for treatment with a free verification of benefits from our admissions team. Whether you come to our programs or not we will ensure that you receive personalized recommendations for treatment based on your needs.
It is commonly used to treat various mental health conditions. Here is how family therapy targets different conditions:
Family therapy for Trauma-related disorders (safety, regulation, predictability)
When clients work with our psychiatric provider, Paula Weisman, PMHNP-BC, family therapy can support:
Family sessions do not provide medication advice, but they help the system support the plan.
Average 5.0 Rating
"I felt supported, understood, and never judged. The therapists here actually listen, and the groups helped me build confidence and skills I didn’t even know I needed. I’m healthier, calmer, and finally hopeful about my future. I’m so grateful for the care I received.”
Client Satisfaction
Family sessions are coordinated with the client’s individual therapy, group programming, and (when indicated) psychiatric care to keep the home environment aligned with the treatment plan.
In PHP programs, IOP programs, and general outpatient programs, families typically participate in weekly sessions over 4-8 weeks. Early progress is often measured by reduced conflict frequency, improved adherence to safety plans, and clearer role boundaries, not necessarily symptom elimination.
Family therapy is not couples counseling, mediation, parenting classes, or crisis containment.
Family vs. individual therapy: Individual therapy focuses on one person’s internal struggles in a confidential, one-on-one setting. In contrast, family therapy addresses relationship patterns and communication within the entire family system to resolve interconnected issues.
Family vs. couples therapy: Couples therapy focuses on the romantic dyad. Family therapy addresses the broader system. The romantic relationship becomes just one piece of a much larger puzzle that includes parent-child relationships, sibling bonds, and the complex web of interactions that shape family life.
Family vs. parent coaching: Parent coaching and skills groups are often skills-based and educational, focusing on practical how-to strategies (for example, co-parenting tools, managing tantrums, or screen-time battles).
They may not involve family-systems treatment planning or the deeper relational work that happens in clinical family therapy.
Family therapy is a regulated clinical process performed by licensed professionals (e.g., psychologists or social workers). It is designed to assess and treat behavioral health conditions and explore the “why” behind actions.
Clear expectations about coverage, billing, and reimbursement help families avoid surprises.
The big question: “Does insurance cover family therapy?” The short answer: Often, yes. However, to get insurance to pay, at least one person in the family must have a formal diagnosis (like anxiety or depression).
This person is called the Identified Patient. Providers use CPT billing codes to document the service. Usually, they use 90847 if the whole family is present, or 90846 if they speak with the family without the patient in the room.
Family therapy at Wellness Hills is led by New Jersey licensed therapists, including those holding LPC or LAC credentials, under the clinical oversight of Leigh Rasmussen, LPC, LCADC, our Program Director.
When medication management is part of the plan, coordination occurs with Paula Weisman, PMHNP-BC. Care coordination support, including family involvement planning, is facilitated by our primary therapists.
Wellness Hills adheres to evidence-based quality and safety standards established by The Joint Commission (TJC), and we follow applicable federal and New Jersey state regulations and apply evidence-based standards to our clinical and safety procedures.
To make sure you are actually getting better, we use a method called measurement-based care. We don’t just guess how you’re doing, we track it with real numbers. For example, if a client with depression and anxiety is undergoing family therapy:
If these scores show that things aren’t changing or are staying the same, our team will quickly change your treatment plan. This ensures that the work we do in our sessions leads to real, noticeable improvements in how your family gets along every day.
Whether you’re stepping into family therapy for the first time or you need a structured step-down into family therapy PHP, family therapy IOP, or outpatient family therapy, your next move starts with a call. Our Director of Admissions, Rachael La Ponte, and her team are ready to guide your care coordination. They’ll listen, map out your options, and help build a plan that fits.
Mindset:
More important than physical items are a few key attitudes to bring:
Logistical Items:
Information and Preparation:
In the first family session, we focus on understanding what’s happening at home and setting clear goals for treatment.
After intake, the team recommends the appropriate level of care and coordinates therapy, psychiatry, and family involvement into one integrated plan.
If you are in crisis, call 911 or text 988 immediately.
Facility Credential: Wellness Hills Mental Health Treatment is licensed by the New Jersey Department of Health (License No. 70290104).
These FAQs cover the family therapy questions we most often hear from parents, partners, and loved ones during admissions calls and early sessions.
In both PHP and IOP, family sessions typically occur once per week for about 1 hour, though some programs may schedule them monthly or as needed, depending on the individual’s progress.
Participants usually include anyone the client considers significant to their recovery. This commonly includes the nuclear family and the extended & elected family.
Treatment can continue. Clinicians help adjust plans and focus on available supports.
Yes, when clinically appropriate and with consent.
HIPAA guidelines apply. Shared and private information boundaries are explained clearly at the start, addressing confidentiality in family therapy concerns.
Telehealth options may be available depending on program structure and clinical appropriateness.
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline | 988 Lifeline – Official U.S. crisis hotline site.
American Psychological Association (APA) | APA PsycNet Record: Structural family therapy (Colapinto, 2019) – Bibliographic record for a handbook chapter outlining Structural Family Therapy concepts.
National Library of Medicine | PubMed: Differentiation of self: A scoping review of Bowen Family Systems Theory’s core construct (Clinical Psychology Review, 2022) – Scoping review summarizing evidence on differentiation of self in Bowen family systems theory and links to psychological health/relationship outcomes.
