I would have answered once upon a time with more questions: “How could helping be overrated? Isn’t helping others a good thing?” I answer that question differently now: Helping is overrated when it is driven more by my own anxiety than by the real needs ...

In the fall of 2002, I began my first formal training in Bowen family systems theory. I understand it to be a theory of human neurophysiological functioning and development, for both individuals and their human systems, with both inextricably intertwined as are the human mind ...

Recently, I was walking with a friend through snowy woods, talking about some hopes and plans I have for my vocational future. As I spoke about this, my mind became fuzzy, and I was muddled in a deep feeling of insecurity and doubt, even as ...

WPFC, founded as an educational center for those interested in learning a theory about how families and organizations work, operates with the tenets of Bowen systems theory in paying attention to relationships, in thinking and managing self in ways that show the principles of the ...

Candie and Miles* were upset and afraid.  Their neighborhood had recently erupted in multiple instances of gun violence, some of which had happened right in front of their home. They wanted to move as soon as possible.   When this couple shared their prayer request ...

Long ago, I read about wolves and rabbits in a particular area.  When the number of wolves went up, the number of rabbits went down.  With fewer rabbits to eat, the wolf population went down.  With fewer wolves to eat them, the rabbit population went ...

How can we understand human functioning?  Through facts? Feelings?  Something else? Philosophy, theology, literature, ethics, and other disciplines have their own methodologies for making sense of being human.  However, Dr. Bowen took a scientific approach.  This did not replace other disciplines, but rather provided a ...

I emerged from my family of origin into the adult world at a time when new possibilities were happening for young women.  It was the ‘60’s and ‘70’s, and the women’s movement was in full swing.  But along with excitement and enthusiasm for a future ...

My relationship with my father was tepid, punctuated by occasional violence. Like many men, I swore I’d never treat my child the way he treated me. As a young camp counsellor, my glowing evaluations confirmed that I was nothing like him. This was an understandable, ...

Students of Bowen theory find all sorts of ways to make the theory their own, often beginning with a single idea that commanded their attention. The point of this series is to describe how one tidbit gleaned from Bowen theory has stuck with or influenced ...