1-2-1 Family Constellations Therapy

What is Family Constellations Therapy?

Family Constellations Therapy (sometimes called Systemic Constellations) is an experiential approach that explores how our significant relationships, family history and wider social systems shape our lives. Originally developed by the German psychotherapist Bert Hellinger, the field has evolved considerably and is practiced in many different ways.

Rather than seeing us as isolated individuals, Family Constellations recognises that we exist within vast webs of relationships and systems. These might include families, friendships, workplaces or communities in our present. Systems can also include wider influences such as culture, class, institutions, economics and migration (to name but a few). These shape our lives in the present, just as they have shaped the lives of our ancestors and communities across generations.

We emerge through this complex web of systems both past and present. Family Constellations offers a way of exploring the wider contexts and histories from which present-day difficulties arise, at the same time as creating the opportunity for something new to unfold in life.  For more on how that happens, read on below.

Why Integrate Somatic Therapy and Family Constellations?

Family Constellations and Somatic Therapy each bring something different to the work. Family Constellations helps us explore the wider systems that have shaped your life. Somatic Therapy helps us notice how experience shows up in the body in the present moment — through sensation, activation, settling, posture, impulse or nervous-system response.

My practice brings these two perspectives together. My experience as a Somatic Therapist shapes how I facilitate the constellation itself: what I notice, how I pace the work and how I support you to stay connected with your own experience throughout the process. Rather than simply gaining insight into a pattern, the aim is to create space for change that can be felt and integrated, rather than remaining only at the level of insight.

What are the potential benefits?

My experience, both as a practitioner and as someone who has taken part in many constellations, is that Family Constellations therapy can be meaningful in different ways. Sometimes people experience sudden and unexpected changes that can feel quite magical. For example, someone painfully estranged from a family member received a phone call from them shortly after their constellation ended — a real example from my practice.

At the same time, I would not treat an event like this as proof of what caused the change, or as the whole of the work. What often matters afterwards is how we reflect on the experience and what choices become possible in everyday life. In the example above, an unexpected phone call would still need to be held alongside the relational dynamics that contributed to the estrangement.

I facilitate in trauma-sensitive ways, pacing the work to support curiosity, consent and nervous-system regulation. This can create space to notice what feels meaningful, what changes, and what possibilities become available. The benefits of a constellation can take many different but equally valuable forms:

• We might see familiar events from a different perspective, opening up new possibilities in how we approach things afterwards.
• We might experience a more resourced state, giving us an embodied reference point to return to. For example, someone might notice less fear and more courage as a constellation unfolds.
• We might explore a relational movement or conversation that is no longer possible in everyday life — for example because someone has died, contact is unsafe, or the conversation could never realistically take place.
• We might witness something shift within the wider system itself, with changes unfolding that feel quietly mysterious. I do not claim to understand exactly how these moments occur — nor do I promise them — but I have witnessed them often enough to take them seriously.

What brings people to this work?

People come to Family Constellations with many different questions and life themes. Some are looking for a fresh perspective on long-standing relationship patterns. Others are navigating change, searching for meaning, or trying to understand where they belong in their family, community, work or the wider world.

Sometimes the question is less about relationships than about identity. You may be exploring who you are becoming, navigating a significant life transition, or wondering how to create a life that feels more aligned with your values. Many of the people I work with are neurodivergent or LGBTQ+, while many others are not. What they often have in common is a desire to live with greater authenticity, connection and choice.

Some people bring creative projects, leadership, work or questions of vocation. Others bring experiences of migration, chronic illness, grief or difficult decisions. We can constellate businesses, artistic practice, communities, places, our relationship to symptoms or health experiences, aspirations and future possibilities, as well as family relationships. Others come with the effects of trauma, loss or long-standing emotional patterns: Family Constellations can sit alongside ongoing therapy or offer another experiential perspective when talking alone has not reached everything that feels important.

Whatever brings you here, the work begins with the questions and life themes that matter most to you.

Should I choose a 1-2-1 or group session?

Both 1-2-1 sessions and group Family Constellations can be equally powerful. There is no single “best” format. The right choice depends on the issue you are bringing, your preferences, and what feels most supportive at this point in your life. I offer both approaches and can help you decide which is likely to suit you best in an Orientation Session, if you are not sure.

Many people choose a 1-2-1 session because they want a private space. Some are bringing experiences that feel too personal to explore in a group. Others find that working individually feels more supportive for their nervous system or simply safer as a place to begin. Some people also choose an individual session before attending a workshop, or afterwards to explore themes that emerged in the group.

Privacy can also be particularly important within smaller communities. For example, LGBTQ+ communities can have closer social networks, making it harder to explore sensitive relationship dynamics openly. Others choose 1-2-1 sessions because they are well known professionally or publicly and value the additional confidentiality an individual session provides.

The unique gift of a group workshop is the opportunity to work with live representatives. Many people describe it as deeply moving to watch others embody aspects of their family or situation, often expressing dynamics that resonate in unexpected ways. Groups also offer a powerful sense of shared humanity. Representing in someone else’s constellation can be meaningful in its own right, and many people leave with a deeper appreciation of the patterns that shape all our lives.

If you’re interested in experiencing Family Constellations in a group, you can find details of my monthly online workshops here.

What happens in a session?

Orientation session – 60 minutes @ £60

Many people find an Orientation Session a reassuring way to experience the work before deciding whether to go further. During the session we will:

• explore what has brought you to therapy and what you hope to work with
• answer any questions you have about how I practice
• consider together whether I am the right practitioner for you, and whether Family Constellations is the right approach at this time
• experience a short piece of somatic or Family Constellations work, tailored to your enquiry

If you’re unsure whether this work is right for you, I usually recommend starting with an Orientation Session.

Family Constellations session – 60 minutes (£110) or 90 minutes (£165)

We begin by exploring what has brought you here. You don’t need to arrive with a perfectly formed question—we’ll develop your enquiry together and find a focus that feels meaningful.

We then create a constellation using the approach that best suits you. Throughout the session, somatic pauses and check-ins help you stay connected to yourself and the present moment, creating space to slow down, reflect and remain at choice.

Towards the end of the session, we’ll make time to reflect on what you’ve experienced. If helpful, you may choose to take away an orienting image – a photograph or screenshot of the final constellation – to support your ongoing reflection and the next steps in your life.