There are many licensing credentials (letters behind our names) in the therapy world. LMFT stands for Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. Many times people misunderstand that we Only work with couples.
As an LMFT, the focus is on understanding the "System as a Whole." "Work systems", "relational systems", "parent-child systems", "friendship systems". Examples of this could be working with symptoms of "Anxiety", how do these symptoms impact the client at work? In their friendships? In their intimate relationships? As we journey to do the "root work", we are also exploring "systemic residuals" (how symptoms impact other areas of life) to ensure that those areas are being addressed as well. "Deep breathing" can help with symptoms of anxiety, but also if "Anxiety" has played a role in impacting work relationships and/or friendship - those avenues need to be explored as well....which will take a little more work than simply Deep Breathing :-)
Additionally as an LMFT, we have expert level training in working specifically with couples (in addition to families and individuals). Often times, I have had couples inform me that they previously worked with a therapist and felt that the therapist mainly aligned with one partner, leaving the other partner alienated. There is a noticeable difference in specialized training in working with only one individual versus working with a couple or a family. Those with specialized training in working with multiple individuals in the room will generally identify "the Couple/Family" as "the client" versus "one individual in relationship" as "the client" (this wording may change a bit when navigating Insurance....stay tuned for my upcoming blog about the Pros of Self-Pay/Private Pay).
All-in-all, it's about understanding the balance (or more so- imbalance) that is occurring in the client and/or couples' lives and finding a way to partner with my clients to find and obtain the proper Balance that works for them.
For more information and understanding on LMFT and/or my specializations, please set up your initial session and/or email me directly (candice@heartofabundance.org) to begin navigating to your "root work" as an individual or couple.
*Disclaimer: This does not mean that other clinicians outside of LMFTs cannot work with couples and/or work with individuals from a "systemic view point". This is simple to provide a better understanding of LMFT and the specialized areas of focus.