Generational Trauma Therapy with Family Constellations
generational trauma
If you feel caught in repeating family, relationship or emotional patterns that do not seem to start with you, Family Constellations can help you explore the hidden generational patterns beneath them and begin to move forward with more freedom.
Signs you may be carrying generational trauma:
- Anxiety, depression or emotional shutdown linked to family history
- Repeating relationship patterns, such as attracting the same type of partner
- Repeating emotional dynamics that keep happening again and again
- Carrying guilt, shame or responsibility that feels bigger than you
- Emotional reactions that seem disproportionate
- Family secrets, exclusions or unresolved grief
- Feeling trapped by loyalty to parents, grandparents or ancestors
If you feel caught in repeating family, relationship or emotional patterns that do not seem to start with you, a private Family Constellations session can help explore the wider family-system dynamics behind them.
"I have seen Constellators in Europe and Brazil and was really pleased to find someone with world class skill here in Australia. A wonderful surprise to find Yildiz.”
Carlos, Sydney
How Family Constellations can help
Family Constellations does not try to blame parents or ancestors. It looks at the wider family system and explores whether unresolved trauma, exclusion, grief, loss, migration, violence, addiction, shame or family secrets may still be affecting later generations.
Many of us have been taught to see ourselves as self-sufficient and separate from our family history. However, trauma research, attachment theory and family-systems thinking suggest that unresolved experiences in previous generations may continue to shape emotional and relational patterns.
Family Constellations can help clients explore inherited family patterns and begin to relate to them with more awareness, choice and freedom.
Generational trauma, also called intergenerational or transgenerational trauma, refers to trauma patterns that may affect families across generations. Family Constellations therapy explores how unresolved events, exclusions, grief, shame, violence, migration, war, abuse or family secrets may continue to influence later generations.
Research into trauma, attachment, family systems and epigenetics suggests that the effects of trauma may influence later generations through psychological, relational, social and biological pathways. Family Constellations therapy works with the family-system and relational patterns that may continue after unresolved trauma.
Is Family Constellations evidence-based?
While Family Constellations is not yet as extensively researched as some mainstream therapies, the developing literature and clinical interest suggest it may be useful as a complementary systemic approach for exploring family and trauma patterns.
There is emerging evidence on Family Constellations therapy:
Yildiz Sethi is currently a practitioner participating in a study exploring the effectiveness of a single online session of Family Constellations.
Read evidence based reasearch on Yildiz's personal website click here
Research in America Read Research
Trauma Informed Treatment on Yildiz's personal website click here
Read about Trauma Informed Treatmentson Yildiz's personal website click here
Rapid Core Healing Trauma Treatments click here
What is generational trauma?
Blue Knot describes intergenerational trauma, transgenerational trauma and collective trauma as related issues, especially in relation to First Nations communities and other affected groups.
For more information click to read:
Blue Knot Foundation — Intergenerational Trauma
The Healing Foundation — Intergenerational Trauma
PACJA literature review on Family Constellation Therapy and intergenerational trauma
Find out more about Yildiz's approach to trauma recovery on her personal website HERE
Working With Generational Trauma Patterns
Generational trauma may be connected to unresolved events in the wider family system, including war, migration, violence, injustice, abuse, adoption, exclusion, shame, secrecy, grief or early death. These events may continue to affect later generations through repeated emotional, relational and behavioural patterns.
Family Constellations offers a practical, experiential way of exploring these hidden family-system dynamics. The aim is not to blame parents or previous generations, but to bring unconscious loyalties and inherited burdens into awareness.
These patterns may be passed on through emotional, relational, social, behavioural and sometimes biological pathways. Family Constellations works at the level of family-system and relational patterns.
This work may be especially relevant when someone has already done counselling, therapy or personal development, but still feels caught in patterns that seem larger than their own personal story.
How a Family Constellations Session Works
In a private Family Constellations session, the client brings an issue they would like to explore. This may involve relationship difficulties, family conflict, grief, trauma patterns, anxiety, emotional blocks or a repeated life pattern that does not seem to shift.
The session looks beyond the individual alone and considers the wider family system. Through the constellation process, hidden loyalties and family-system entanglements may become clearer, allowing the client to see the issue from a new perspective.
Sessions are available online across Australia. Sessions are available face to face in Tamborine Mountain (Gold Coast Hinterland).
Client Experiences
"An amazing experience. I couldn’t imagine how constellations could work online. I felt so much and the constellations were so deep. Highly recommend it."
If you feel caught in repeating family, relationship or emotional patterns that may be connected to unresolved family history, a Family Constellations session can help you explore what may be operating beneath the surface.