Marriage, Family and Child Therapy
Submitted by msamaan on Fri, 07/31/2009 - 14:00Some time ago, I wrote an open letter to pastors in the Sacramento area. I want to share that letter with you because I think it best describes my services and my methods.
Dear Pastor,
I am a Marriage, Family and Child Therapist, licensed by the State of California (MFT License 6381), with a Master of Science degree in Counseling. I have provided counseling to individuals and families since 1974. I have been a part-time instructor of Psychology at American River College for 30 years.
I strongly believe in the importance of affirming Christian marriage and family values. As a wife and mother of three adult children and grandmother of two, I have deep empathy and understanding of the many challenges that families face today.
I believe that a Christian family that shares love, intimacy and positive communication, is an important foundation for both church and community. As a Christian, family-oriented therapist, I am commited to helping families in crisis. I have extensive experience and skills in group therapy, stress management, pre-marital and couples therapy.
In addition to working with couples and families, I provide pre-marital counseling to couples utilizing Inventories for Premarital Counseling (Couple and Family Map, [Prepare/Enrich], by David Olson of the University of Minnesota).
The in-depth counseling I provide will encourage couples to build on their strengths and assist them in dealing with their growth areas. I find that it is important for them to deal with their individual issues and problems, which might affect a healthy, strong and intimate relationship. My experience tells me that it is important for a couple to recognize and overcome individual issues and problems from their past experiences.
I encourage couples to continue investing their time and effort in enhancing their communication and conflict resolution skills. According to the feedback from couples I have counseled, they enjoy a stronger marriage with healthy family relationships. I also emphasize the importance of attending and being actively involved in church activities.
I am available to provide counseling to individuals and couples to better equip them to successfully face the challenges of marriage and family life.
Sincerely,
Mary Samaan, MFT
What is "Christian Counseling"?
Submitted by msamaan on Fri, 05/29/2009 - 14:50In California, a licensed counseling professional is prohibited by California law to claim to be a Christian counselor. While there is no question that psychologists ascribe to some form of personal belief system including a belief in a greater being or power or God, that belief system is supposed to remain separate from the professional practice.
There have been volumes of books written on the subject of "Christian counseling". The distinction can be made, however, that while a psychologist may be a Christian in their own personal belief, the State doesn't recognize any religion or theology to be part of the licensing requirement.
It can, therefore, be somewhat of a frustration for the seeker of counseling services to find a family or marriage counselor practicing their faith in their professional practice. Many times, it becomes a matter of calling several phone numbers and awaiting return phone calls before a determination can be made as to whether or not a pschologist offers counseling from a Christian perspective.
