Family Therapy in Palo Alto
Build stronger connections, improve communication, and create more peace at home. Serving families in the Palo Alto Bay area and online across California.
Strengthen Family Communication
Learn tools & strategies to improve how your family talks, listens, & supports one another.
Reduce Family Conflict
Work through disagreements & patterns of tension so your home can feel calmer & more connected.
Build Healthier Family Dynamics
Create a more supportive, understanding environment where everyone’s voice is heard & respected.
It’s hard when the people you love feel the furthest away
At Core Wellness Living & Family Therapy in Palo Alto, we can help you break these unhelpful patterns, create more positive, meaningful relationships, and feel more at peace in your home.
Family Therapy | Palo Alto Bay Area
- Frequent arguments, yelling, or backtalk between family members.
- Difficulty communicating or feeling like no one is really listening.
- Increased tension, anger, or resentment in the home.
- Parents feeling ineffective or overwhelmed in their parenting roles.
- Children or teens feeling misunderstood or like their voice doesn’t matter.
- Couples struggling to parent as a team and feeling disconnected.
- Emotional distance or lack of meaningful connection.
Family Therapy | Palo Alto Bay Area
Who Family Therapy Can Help
Family therapy is for any family feeling stuck, disconnected, or overwhelmed by ongoing conflict. It’s not just for families in crisis—family therapy can be helpful anytime communication breaks down, emotions run high, or relationships feel strained. Whether you’re dealing with parenting challenges, sibling conflict, or family stress related to life transitions, therapy offers a safe space to work through it together.
At Core Wellness Living & Family Therapy, we work with families of all ages and life stages. Our approach is grounded in family systems therapy, recognizing that each family member plays a role in the family dynamic. Together, we’ll help you identify unhelpful patterns, improve communication, and reduce conflict.
We also incorporate evidence-based tools, including:
- CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) to challenge negative thought patterns.
- DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy) to help regulate emotions and improve conflict resolution skills.
- FBT (Family-Based Treatment) when appropriate, especially when family therapy is part of eating disorder treatment.
Family therapy sessions may involve the whole family, individual family members, or specific subgroups, depending on what’s most helpful for your situation. We also offer parenting support and can coordinate with individual therapists when needed.
Family Therapy | Palo Alto Bay Area
Types of Conflict Family Therapy Can Help:
Frequent arguing
or tension at home
Parenting
challenges
Stress from life
transitions
Breakdowns in
communication
Emotional
disconnection
Unresolved
family issues
Communicate More Effectively
Family therapy helps your family learn how to talk—and listen—to each other in ways that actually lead to understanding. You’ll practice real communication skills so everyone can express their needs, share their feelings, and feel heard without it turning into an argument.
Resolve Conflict in a Healthier Way
Disagreements are part of family life, but when they turn into shouting matches or cold silence, it wears everyone down. In family therapy, you’ll learn conflict resolution skills to work through disagreements without blame, yelling, or emotional shutdowns so you can actually resolve issues instead of fighting about the same things over and over.
Strengthen Emotional Bonds
Family therapy is about more than fixing problems—it’s about helping you feel closer and more connected to each other. We help you rebuild trust, improve understanding, and create a family environment where everyone feels valued and supported.
Create a More Peaceful Home
When tension and conflict are constant, home doesn’t feel like a safe or relaxing place. Family therapy helps reduce the frustration, resentment, and emotional distance that often builds up over time so your home can feel calmer, more supportive, and a place you actually want to be.
Develop Parenting Tools & Support
Parenting is hard—and there’s no manual. In family therapy, we offer practical parenting support to help you feel more confident and clear about how to guide your kids or teens. Together, we’ll help you develop strategies for setting boundaries, improving communication, and supporting your child’s emotional well-being.
Family therapy is a space to hit pause, get some perspective, and learn how to reconnect and move forward together.
Who We Are
Why Work With Core Wellness Living & Family Therapy
Life can be complicated.
The demands of work, family, relationships, and self-expectations can feel overwhelming, leaving you unsure of how to cope. At times, it may seem like there’s too much to balance, and managing it all becomes exhausting. In these moments, it’s easy to feel stuck or disconnected from the life you truly want to live.
At Core Wellness Living, we believe therapy is where clarity begins. It’s a space to make sense of your experiences and learn healthier ways to manage stress and emotions. We help you embrace your imperfections, find strength in your individuality, and connect with the shared human experience.
Our diverse team of therapists brings over 15 years of combined experience, offering a personalized approach that honors your culture, history, and personal journey, using evidence-based methods to guide you toward meaningful change.
The values behind Core Wellness Living & Family Therapy
Genuineness
We believe that being comfortable with who you are is key to meaningful change. Our approach is open, authentic, and grounded, helping you embrace your own truth.
Common Humanity
We all face struggles, make mistakes, and experience pain. Instead of seeing these challenges as personal failings, we view them as a part of being human.
Compassion
We believe that showing kindness and empathy to both ourselves and others can foster deeper connections, promote healing, and create a more compassionate world.
Curiosity
We encourage a mindset of curiosity—a desire to explore new ideas and perspectives that invite growth and help us better understand ourselves and the world around us.
Meet Our Team
Match With A Family Therapist
Find the right family therapist or counselor for you. Browse our team profiles or contact us to get matched. Our team is available for in-person family therapy in the Palo Alto Bay Area or online therapy sessions across California.
Our Approach
How Family Therapy Works
1. We take the time to get to know your family
We start by learning about your family’s history, challenges, and what brings you to therapy. Depending on your needs, we may meet with individual family members, the whole family, or subgroups. Our goal is to understand your family system and build trust.
2. We create a plan together
Once we understand your goals, we’ll develop a personalized treatment plan. We may offer parenting coaching, individual sessions, or referrals to individual therapy if needed to support the family’s progress.
3. We support you every step of the way
“Healthy families aren’t built on being the same; they’re built on learning how to hear and honor each other’s differences." — Unknown
Family Therapy | Palo Alto Bay Area
Questions About Family Therapy
Does the whole family come to therapy together?
Sometimes. It depends on what your family is struggling with. In Family Therapy, we may meet with everyone together or see individual family members separately to better understand the dynamics and determine what will be most helpful for your situation.
Does family therapy cost more than individual therapy?
No. At Core Wellness, Family Therapy is billed at the same hourly rate as individual therapy. In some cases, we may suggest longer sessions (such as 80 minutes instead of 50) to ensure there’s enough time for everyone to feel heard and supported.
Will my insurance cover family therapy?
Most insurance plans do offer coverage for Family Therapy. In our Palo Alto practice, we typically designate one family member as the primary client for billing purposes, and sessions are coded as “Client with others present.” We’re happy to provide documentation to support your insurance reimbursement process.
Can we do family therapy and individual therapy at the same time?
Yes. Many of our clients benefit from doing both. At Core Wellness, we can coordinate care with other individual therapists to ensure everyone involved is supported and working toward shared goals throughout the process of Family Therapy.
How long does family therapy take?
Every family is different. Some families begin to notice progress after a few sessions, while others—especially those with long-standing conflict—may benefit from several months or more. In our practice, most families see the best results with a commitment of at least six months of regular sessions.
Family Therapy | Palo Alto Bay Area
What You Can Expect From Family Therapy
While every family’s journey is different, with time, effort, and commitment to therapy, you may experience:
- More peace and calm at home
- Better communication skills and conflict resolution strategies
- Less nagging, yelling, and resentment
- Stronger, more positive family relationships
- A renewed sense of connection, trust, and teamwork
Core Wellness Living & Family Therapy
How To Get Started
Ready to take the next step or have questions? You can schedule a free 15-minute consultation, send us a message through our contact form, or give us a call—we’re here to make getting started as easy as possible.
