A Report: Couples with Medical Conditions, Attachment Theoretical Perspectives and Evidence for Emotionally-Focused Couples Therapy

Abstract

This brief report examines the contribution of Emotionally-focused Therapy for distressed couples, particularly in the context of medical illness. An attachment theoretical framework is provided to assist in understanding individual differences in the experience of both the ill and the care-giving partner.Keywords EFT for couples Á Attachment Á Emotional bonds Á Medical illness Medical conditions, whether minor or serious, can create stress and strain in any couple's relationship, but especially if the relationship was somewhat distressed before the advent of illness. Conversely, a couple's relationship can be an essential resource and source of support in the face of serious medical conditions. This report examines the contribution of Emotionally-focused Therapy for distressed couples, draws on an attachment theoretical framework to understand individual differences in the experience of both the ill and the care-giving partner, and offers recommendations for care of couples who are have encountered chronic illness. Associations Between Personal Relationships and Health OutcomesGiven that epidemiological studies indicate that social isolation is a risk factor for health problems (House et al. 1988), it is not surprising that research has also established that married people have significantly lower risk of mortality and longer life expectancy than divorced people (Lillard and Panis 1996). However, living in a distressed marriage reduces the overall health benefits of marriage; specifically, Kiecolt-Glaser and Newton's (2001)

Thematic review of Family Therapy Journals 2012

“…There was a special issue of Contemporary Family Therapy (32, 2) on medical family therapy with an editorial proposing that medical family therapy is an opportunity for workforce development in healthcare (Hodgson et al ., ), a comprehensive review article (Tyndall et al ., 2012a) and an interview with Susan McDaniel, Jeri Hepworth and Bill Doherty (Jacobs, ), who are pioneers in this field. This special issue contained a useful series of articles on various aspects of medical family therapy, for example, emotionally focused therapy for couples in which one partner has a medical condition (Fitzgerald and Thomas, ), family therapy in primary care (Fox et al ., ; Marlowe et al ., ) and medical couple therapy with military and veteran families (Lewis et al ., ). There were also articles on research (Mendenhall et al ., ) and training (Tyndall et al ., 2012b) in medical family therapy.…”