ABOUT US
Our Mission
TAMFT is a state association dedicated to the advancement and promotion of marriage and family therapy in Texas!
We are:
- More than 1,000 members servicing the mental health needs of individuals, couples, and families in Texas.
- Dedicated to promoting the advancement of marriage and family therapy.
- Committed to providing continuing education to our membership.
- Advocates for the maintenance of the Licensure for Marriage and Family Therapists with the Texas State Board of Health.
- Supporters of students and researchers in the field of Marriage and Family Therapy.
- Providers of opportunities to service our membership and foster the future leaders of our field.
The Profession
Marriage and family therapists are mental health professionals trained and licensed to independently diagnose and treat mental health and substance abuse problems.
Diagnosis and treatment occur with an awareness and understanding of the larger context within which an individual lives and works. Hence, our focus tends to be on relationships among people in addition to distress within an individual.
Marriage and family therapy involves a broader emphasis on the person to examine the nature and role of all factors in primary relationship and networks. This approach is based on the research and theories that individuals are social creatures and do not exist in a vacuum, and therefore, their problems are best treated within a systemic context. As such, our orientation is unique among mental health professionals.
The federal government has recognized marriage and family therapy as a core mental health profession along with psychiatry, psychology, social work and psychiatric nursing.
What We Do
MFTs treat individuals, as well as couples and families; all in the context of relationships that incorporate family systems. Our members are often involved in evidence-based treatment research as well as the training of our future therapists. Marriage and family therapists focus on understanding client symptoms and interaction patterns within their existing environment.
MFTs diagnose and treat mental and emotional disorders within the context of marriage, couples and family systems. We offer treatment for a variety of serious clinical problems which include, but are not limited to: anxiety, depression, individual psychological problems, marital problems and child-parent relations.
Other disorders and problems regularly encountered by MFTs include conduct disorder and delinquency, childhood behavioral and emotional disorders, substance abuse and alcoholism, marital problems, relationship enhancement and domestic violence. Approaches to the presenting problem vary with diagnosis and needs.
Commitment to Excellence
The requirements for the attainment of a license to provide Marriage and Family Therapy to our public is very stringent and it can take at least 4 years from the start of school, supervised practice, and finally the attainment of our specialized license.
Our profession continues to demonstrate its effectiveness and our membership continues to grow as the recognition of the importance of treating persons in the contexts in which they live and work increases.
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