In her renowned book, Trauma and Recovery, Judith Herman explored the relationship between sexual abuse and political power and proposed that a person who has been traumatised needs a therapy that privileges safety, allows remembrance and mourning, and encourages reconnection to others (2002). In this issue of the ANZFT, the authors address these themes: safety, remembrance, mourning and reconnection, emphasising that families, social networks and communities are pivotal in helping people heal from trauma.

The last year has seen some positive steps forward for the ANZJFT, building on the efforts of previous years and with thanks to the hard work of the editor Glenn Larner, the subscriptions manager Pat Manolas, and the board and advisory panel.

This issue is testament to the increasing relevance, effectiveness and application of family therapy in the mental health field. It includes articles on a family-sensitive intervention for the community treatment of adult mental illness (e.g. psychosis), an attachment-based family therapy approach to healing intergenerational trauma in the parent-child relationship, research into the effective component of multifamily groups for treating schizophrenia, a narrative approach to working with non-custodial parents that enriches our ideas and practices of motherhood, a narrative art group intervention to address indigenous mental health for parents and children in remote Aboriginal communities and how to do qualitative research in family therapy, for eating disorders, intellectual disability, the dialogical process of therapy and systemic consultation.

A major theme at the recent Australian Association Family Therapy conference in Perth in October 2012 was how to define the discipline of family therapy, what it is and isn't, the limits and boundaries of its practice and profession and the extent to which core systemic thinking and practices have been integrated into other mental health and therapy approaches. One interesting question is how much do we gain, and risk, as family therapy is taken to a wider audience as an evidence-based or family-sensitive practice in mental health, psychology or psychiatry? Perhaps we have adapted so well to changing times and trends that we risk losing our radical voice and identity? Indeed does family therapy have a final chapter in its narrative, and here I am mindful of Cechhin, Ray and Lane's (1994) wonderful story of the ‘the last family therapist’, unable to exit the field and retire gracefully, as meetings, conferences, workshops, writing and the reading of books and articles, go on. Alternatively is family therapy like the proverbial phoenix rising anew from the ashes, regenerating into something new that for now we only see as ‘through a glass darkly’? Are we possibly witnessing a renaissance in the tapestry of family therapy theory and practice as we take its message to a more general audience? Heady questions indeed, and in many ways the articles in this issue all resonate with these themes, as they reflect on the creative effectiveness of the ‘open dialogues’ approach in helping persons with serious mental health issues, examine the contribution of systemic and collaborative approaches in therapeutic assessment and outcome research, illustrate how to engage relational healing in an adult attachment interview, explore the possibilities for family work/therapy in aged psychiatry and dialogue about possible links between systemic and psychoanalysis, therapy and spirituality.

In the family therapy literature there is increasing interest in the dialogical approach, particularly as it becomes well-grounded in psychotherapy research. One embodiment is ‘open dialogues’, which has developed over a 30-year period in Western Lapland, Finland. This paper outlines my experience of visiting Keropudas Hospital in Tornio, Finland, the birthplace of open dialogues. It explores the seven theoretical principles of open dialogues, associated elements of clinical practice, and the therapist use of self. The author utilises these aspects to reflect on dialogical moments through words and images based on three conceptual themes, which illustrate the relevance of open dialogues for family therapy practitioners and their contexts.

The term ‘single session therapy’ (SST) is a great misnomer, given that almost universally, it would seem, about half the clients who are seen within this approach go on to engage in further therapy work, with a small percentage engaging in long-term therapy. It is not, as some critics (and researchers) assume, the same as offering only one session of therapy. So why call it single session therapy?

This paper aims to show how a trauma lens can be incorporated into existing family therapy practices, changing how therapists perceive presenting problems and therefore the issues and sites of intervention. After reviewing the family therapy literature concerning trauma and defining different types of trauma, the paper discusses how traumatic memories differ from ordinary memories. Ten principles for practice are described to guide therapists in integrating the trauma lens into their family therapy practice. Three case studies are used to illustrate these principles.

In this paper we describe an intervention that focuses on the needs of children in families where a parent has a mental illness and attends a community adult mental health setting. After a brief outline of the literature, we present a family approach that includes children and young people, their parents and grandparents. Case studies then illustrate the work as a ‘best practice’ for parents who are clients in community adult mental health services.

The three main findings of studies conducted by Hoyt, Rosenbaum, and myself during the years 1986–1990 at the Kaiser Permanente Medical Group, were:

1. 1. Single session is the most common length of psychotherapy.

2. 2. The first session in psychotherapy is potentially the most therapeutic and often has the greatest influence on the outcome of therapy.

3. 3. Single session therapy (SST) is the most cost-effective mode of therapy.

In this interview with Bruce Perry, MD, PhD, Senior Fellow of The Child Trauma Academy, Laurie MacKinnon discusses with Dr Perry developmental trauma and the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics, an approach to clinical problem solving that utilises a developmental lens and incorporates advances in neurobiological development. Dr Perry gives his perspective on the causal connection between childhood abuse and later psychiatric diagnosis, the child's contact with a violent parent post-separation, the importance of interventions that address the organisation and functioning of lower parts of the brain and his perspective on the use and limitations of psychotropic medications, cognitive behaviour therapy and family therapy.

Nine-year-old Ben was said to hate women. His mother was terrified he'd ‘grow up a woman basher’. This paper describes the work done with Ben and his family at the Hobart Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service. We drew predominantly on three therapeutic modalities: Theraplay, Family Attachment Narrative Therapy and Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy. Our work enabled Ben's mother to navigate the aftermath of her own trauma history in order to heal Ben's attachment trauma.

This study examined the relationship between levels of group cohesion, defined as whole group relationships, and between-session therapeutic homework adherence in a multi-family group therapy (MFGT) for people with schizophrenia. Participants from 18 consenting families attending MFGT groups completed weekly homework adherence ratings, group cohesion and spontaneous between-session activity measures. Levels of group cohesion at each session were compared with measures of scheduled and spontaneous homework adherence reported at the next session. It was hypothesised that higher levels of group cohesion would be related to homework adherence and other spontaneous between-session therapeutic activity completed by group members. Results show higher levels of group cohesion were associated with higher rates of spontaneous between-session therapeutic activity. However, contrary to expectations no significant relationship between cohesion and scheduled homework completion was found. The implications of the findings for group processes and homework adherence are discussed.

In 2001 Bloom produced a comprehensive review of single-session approaches to therapy (SST). In his paper he outlined the concept of single session therapy and considered the evidence that could be used to support implementation of single session approaches. At the time, Bloom's was probably the most comprehensive review of research on single session therapy available: he considered papers that provided overviews of approaches to developing and delivering single-session treatment, as well as papers that used controlled and uncontrolled methods to evaluate outcomes. What I will do in this paper is to informally review the literature on single session therapy that has been published since Bloom's 2001 paper. The paper is not intended as a formal review or meta-analysis of research data, partly because the field still does not have such methodological rigour.

One of the major ways child sexual abuse can have an impact on individuals is in their later ability to have and maintain fulfilling couple relationships. Survivors may experience avoidance behaviours that become problematic in their adult intimate relationships. If couple therapists fail to focus on these traumatic imprints, the therapy may founder. This paper proposes that a multi-theoretical approach enables the couple therapist to deal with the complex problems such couples present including sexuality and intimacy concerns. Such an approach integrates trauma theory, attachment theory, feminist principles, body-oriented psychotherapy, and systemic couple therapy.

Therapeutic Assessment with Children (TA-C) is a brief semi-structured intervention in which psychological assessment is used to help families with children and adolescents to change. In this paper we introduce the TA-C model, describe its semi-structured format and exemplify how it can be applied by family therapists.

This article is located in the field of custody and day-to-day care, with a focus on experiences of mothering where mothers no longer have everyday care of their children. At the time of writing, tens of thousands of mothers live separately from their children in Aotearoa, New Zealand. However, there is a general perception of rarity associated with non-resident mothers, partly due to their reluctance to speak of loss of custody. In this article, we develop a theoretical discussion around the inside/outside relationships between non-resident mothers and their children that informs therapeutic practice. We argue that mothers who live apart from their children are situated at the edge or periphery of their children's day-to-day lives and experience this as outside the lives of their children. Nevertheless, mothers’ stories speak of qualities of (m)othering that have been born of and nurtured by longstanding and long-term commitment to their children.

This article describes walk-in single session counselling, a form of service delivery that enables clients to receive one session of counselling without the usual hurdles of intake and wait times. We distinguish between walk-in counselling and single session therapy by appointment. We describe a mindset for therapists that supports walk-in work. We also describe the workings of a walk-in session using a transcript, with commentary, of an actual session. Benefits and possible applications of the walk-in counselling concept are discussed.

In this article two streams of thought within family therapy, one representing a traditional research focus and the other postmodern oriented practices are brought together. A qualitative study is described that used standardised measures to monitor therapeutic practice and provide feedback on process and outcome to therapists. The opportunities and pitfalls concerning this approach are discussed and illustrated. The use of measures as conversational tools increases and expands opportunities for collaboration between children, parents and their therapists. However, in organisations these measures risk becoming tools of competition instead of conversation, which is helped when managers take responsibility for implementing and supporting a culture of feedback.

Working with survivors of trauma is mostly challenging, exhausting, long-term and often ‘messy’, when interventions that ‘should’ work, don't, or the unexpected arises. Nevertheless, explanations that speak to recovery from trauma more and more rely on neurobiological concepts to account for any positive change. Combining the family systems approach of Murray Bowen and recent research on the brain and trauma, post trauma symptoms are viewed as part of the ‘family emotional process’ even when traumatic events have emanated from outside the family system itself. Variations in responses to trauma, including dissociation and self-harm are discussed in relation to chronic anxiety and ‘differentiation of self’.