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Family Constellations

Updated: Jan 29

Are you experiencing intergenerational trauma? We are all affected by it: When we don't know that we are, that is part of the problem. It is most likely subconsciously ruling your life. Many practitioners say that family constellations may help with this. But what is family constellations? What is its conceptual basis? What does the method look like? What can family constellations help with? How effective is it? Is there anything else that you need to consider? I will dive into these questions for you to see if it is for you, with a trained practitioner...


Family constellations


What is family constellations?

Family constellations, also known as 'systemic constellations' and 'systemic family constellations', is a therapeutic method which draws on elements of family systems therapy, existential phenomenology and Zulu beliefs (due to its origins) and attitudes to family. In a single session, a family constellation supposedly attempts to reveal an unrecognised dynamic that spans multiple generations in a given family and to resolve the deleterious effects of that dynamic by encouraging the subject, through representatives, to encounter and accept the factual reality of the past, including family secrets, shame, and emotional trauma.

 

Family constellation therapy is a therapeutic intervention that a therapist might use in order to gain insight and information into a client’s family history, dynamics, and possible dysfunctional patterns. German therapist Bert Hellinger developed this intervention based on components of Gestalt therapy (an approach to psychotherapy that helps clients focus on the present to understand what is actually happening in their lives at this moment, and how it makes them feel in the moment, rather than what they may assume to be happening based on past experience) and psychodynamic therapy (which focuses on unconscious processes as they are manifested in the client's present behaviour. The goals of psychodynamic therapy are client self-awareness and understanding of the influence of the past on present behaviour.


Family constellations with Marine Sélénée


Family constellations diverges significantly from conventional forms of cognitive, behaviour and psychodynamic psychotherapy. Positive outcomes from the therapy have been attributed to conventional explanations such as suggestion and empathy, emphasising the role of the Enlightened Witness.

 

Practitioners claim that present-day problems and difficulties may be influenced by traumas suffered in previous generations of the family, even if those affected are unaware of the original event. Hellinger referred to the relation between present and past problems that are not caused by direct personal experience as systemic entanglements, said to occur when unresolved trauma has afflicted a family through an event such as murder, suicide, death of a mother in childbirth, early death of a parent or sibling, war, natural disaster, emigration, or abuse. The psychiatrist Iván Böszörményi-Nagy referred to this phenomenon as "Invisible loyalties".


So, family constellation is a therapeutic process conducted in a single session to deal with difficulties you experience with your partner, family or work relationships. Family constellations can be a stand-alone approach to personal growth, or a useful support to other forms of counselling, coaching, therapy, in either an individual session or a workshop. The actions of others in your family system can have significant , often deeply unconscious) effects on you - even across generations. In constellations the connection of your current life issues and problems to the past generations in your family is explored.


Family constellations with Marine Sélénée


Conceptual basis

When utilising the family constellation, the therapist has people who are not related to the client take on roles of various family members to act out dynamics related to the client’s concerns.


This technique is considered a form of expressive therapy, and the goal is to help the client work through a concern or develop better insight into a conflict. The philosophical orientation of family constellations was derived through an integration of existential phenomenology, family systems therapy, and elements of indigenous mysticism.


The phenomenological lineage can be traced through philosophers Franz Brentano, Edmund Husserl and Martin Heidegger. This perspective stands in contrast to the positivist reductionist orientation of scientific psychology. Rather than understanding mind, emotion and consciousness in terms of its constituent parts, existential phenomenology opens perception to the full panorama of human experience and seeks to grasp a sense of meaning.

 

Family constellations take their form from family systems psychology. Influential figures in this movement include Jacob Moreno, the founder of psychodrama; Iván Böszörményi-Nagy, the pioneer of transgenerational systemic thinking; Milton Erickson, a pioneer of brief therapy and hypnotherapy; Eric Berne who conceived the concept of life scripts; and Virginia Satir, who developed family sculpture, the precursor of Systemic Constellations. In the past decade, further advancements in the use of the process have been innovated by practitioners throughout the world.

The process draws from indigenous spiritual mysticism to supposedly contribute towards releasing tensions, lightening emotional burdens, and resolving real-world problems. Hellinger lived as a Roman Catholic priest in South Africa for 16 years in the 1950s and 1960s. During these years, he became fluent in the Zulu language, participated in Zulu rituals, and gained an appreciation for the Zulu worldview. Of particular importance is the difference between traditional Zulu attitudes toward parents and ancestors and those typically held by Europeans. Heidegger postulated that to be human is to find oneself thrown into a world with no clear logical, ontological, or moral structure. In Zulu culture, Hellinger found a certitude and equanimity that were the hallmarks of Heidegger's elusive authentic Self. The traditional Zulu people lived and acted in a religious world in which the central focal point was the ancestors. They are regarded as positive, constructive, and creative presences. The connection with ancestors is a central feature of the Constellation process.


The term "family constellations" was first used by Alfred Adler in a somewhat different context to refer to the phenomenon that each individual belongs to and is bonded in relationship to other members of his or her family system. One premise of his work is that one can inherit emotional trauma.

 

The method

Since a traditional family constellation involves humans standing in as the client’s family members, it is usually done in a group setting. Group members can take turns as the main client and stand in for each other’s family members. The therapist directs the family members’ posture, position, and words, although sometimes the activity involves minimal talking. The client might interact directly with their relatives in the constellation or stand aside and watch the interactions unfold.

 

In the group setting, therapists typically use drama therapy with the other people in the group to create the family constellation. The client can observe interactions between members in real time to gain insight, or they might role play interactions with group members to practice a confrontation or address a past trauma. This type of role play can be a form of psychodrama.

 

Exploration of these patterns can make the client aware of connections between themselves and various members of their family as well as intergenerational trauma and transgenerational patterns related to mental health and relationships.

 

This description is the prototype group family constellation as developed by Bert Hellinger in the 1990s. Many practitioners have blended Constellation work with psychological aspects of healing. Others have kept the classic form as taught by Hellinger, such as the Constellation Approach. The Constellation Approach merges concepts of Family Constellations, energy medicine, and consciousness studies to complement the understanding of classic constellation methodology.

  • A workshop is led by a facilitator who guides a client (or seeker) to set up a constellation (described below) with regards to the client's personal issue. Either individually or in a group (a group of any size, but smaller groups may be difficult for some clients), these people can explore the issue. Generally, several members will be given an opportunity to set up a constellation in each session.

  • After a brief interview, the facilitator suggests who will be represented in the constellation. These are usually a representative for the seeker, one or more family members, and sometimes abstract concepts such as "depression" or a country.

  • The person presenting the issue (seeker or client) asks people from the group to stand in the constellation as representatives. He or she arranges the representatives according to what feels right in the moment. The seeker then sits down and observes.

  • Several minutes elapse with the representatives standing still and silent. Initially, unlike psychodrama, the representatives do not act, pose, dialogue or role-play.

  • Emphasis is placed on perceptive intuition in placing the representatives and in subsequent steps of the procedure. The aim is supposedly to tune into what the psychiatrist Albrecht Mahr describes as the Knowing Field and former biologist Rupert Sheldrake has suggested is morphic resonance. The Knowing Field is claimed to guide participants to perceive and articulate feelings and sensation that mirror those of the real family members they represent; however, representative perception (morphic resonance) is not a concept with any scientific basis. The representatives have little or no factual knowledge about those they represent, although this does not exclude intuitive knowledge. Nevertheless, the representatives usually experience feelings or physical sensations that are thought to inform the process.

  • The facilitator may ask each representative to briefly report how they feel being placed in relation to the others. The facilitator, seeker, and group members may believe they perceive an underlying dynamic in the spatial arrangement and feelings held by the representatives that influence the pertinent personal issue. Often, configuring multiple generations in a family is thought to reveal that traumas continue to unconsciously affect the living long after the original victims or perpetrators have died.

  • A healing resolution for the issue generally is supposedly achieved after repositioning the representatives and adding key members of the system who have been forgotten or written out of the family history. When every representative feels right in his or her place and the other representatives agree, the facilitator may suggest one or two sentences to be spoken aloud. If the representatives do not feel at peace with their new position or sentences, they can move again or try a different sentence. This is claimed, in an abstract way, to represent a possible resolution of the issues faced by the seeker. Sometimes the process concludes without a full resolution being achieved.

  • ·When the facilitator feels that the healing resolution has taken hold among the representatives, the seeker is invited to "take the place of his/her representative in the constellation". This supposedly allows the seeker to perceive how it feels to be part of a reconfigured system. When everyone feels comfortable in their place, the constellation concludes.


What family constellations can help with

A therapist might suggest a family constellation for a number of presenting concerns, and a client might decide to consider this intervention for a number of reasons, including:

  • The client wants to break dysfunctional or harmful patterns in their relationships that might be related to dynamics that they learned from their family of origin

  • A couple wants to better understand each other’s history and how their families of origin affect what they each bring to the relationship

  • The client wants to confront an abuser from childhood who is deceased, unreachable, or who the client does not feel safe contacting

  • The client wants to gain insight into how patterns from their childhood continue to impact their mental health

Family constellations are not limited to specific diagnoses, but they can be beneficial for those struggling to overcome childhood trauma, experiencing complicated feelings after the death of a relative, or various mental health diagnoses, including depression and anxiety.


Clients who utilise the family constellation might experience catharsis following this intervention because it allowed them to work through conflict, emotional trauma, and difficult past experiences in a safe environment.


Because the family constellation draws the client’s attention to patterns and dynamics they had not previously considered, they will likely develop improved insight into their behaviours. This can lead to healthier communication and more fulfilling relationships.

Family constellations also create a powerful space for processing traumatic events from the client’s past.


Effectiveness

Psychological researchers have extensively studied family constellations as an evidence-based treatment for various mental health concerns.


An analysis of available literature suggests that, when conducted by therapists with appropriate training, a family constellation can lead to “significant improvements” towards a client’s treatment goals; however, if a therapist does not use this intervention correctly, it can have no effect on treatment outcomes.


Although data about overall treatment outcomes are mixed, family constellations have been found to help reduce feelings of stigma around mental health and neurodivergence.


Things to consider

Family constellations can be intense, and participation might bring up strong feelings or memories related to traumatic or stressful events. Clients considering this treatment intervention should ensure that they feel comfortable with their therapist and ask any questions or present concerns they have about doing the family constellation.


Clients need to consider whether they feel comfortable doing a family constellation with a group of people whom they likely do not know. If they feel safer with an individual approach to the family constellation, the therapist can provide them with options for creating their family constellation with objects or toys.


Clients should also have a self-care plan in place to ensure that they can cope with any emotions brought up by the family constellation in a healthy way. Clients will often require ongoing therapy following the family constellation exercise to address traumas, memories, and upsetting dynamics that came up during this activity.

 

Namaste.


Sending you love, light, and blessings brothers.


Olly



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