What are family constellations?

What are family constellations?

Family constellations is a method in which the relationships and hidden dynamics between family members are made visible. And even more than making it visible is that a constellation works towards a healing resolution. That is the point where a new, more natural and healing balance for the whole system is found. The point where love between all members can flow again.
I like to say that a family constellation works with the family soul or family karma. A constellation reveals what is happening in the family soul and heals that soul.

What do you mean by a family soul / family karma?

Each individual belongs to and is bonded in relationship to other members of his or her family system. Bonded to all family members, even if they have passed away a long time ago or if the person has never known them. Some sufferings that happen in family life can have a huge impact not only on the present family but even on many generations that follow.
Some events are known to have this huge impact. Events like a mother or father who dies while there are still small children, a divorce, a child that dies, someone who is rejected from the family, suicide, murder. These life events can lead unconsciously toward destructive familial patterns. Individuals can ‘take on’ destructive patterns of anxiety, depression, anger, guilt, aloneness, addictions and even illness. These individual patterns cannot be understood by events that happened in the past of the individual him or herself. But a constellation can reveal that this pattern comes from entanglement with another family member – even a family member from many generations before. If, for example, a great-grandmother has been very sad because of the death of a child – grief she could never process completely – then you see that one or more family members from next generations take that grief upon their shoulders. They are trying to cry the tears of that great-grandmother. They do this out of love and loyalty. The person himself suffers from grief, but cannot clearly indicate where that comes from. A constellation can show this person the grief is not his or hers but belongs to this great-grandmother. When this insight is gained he or she can release this grief.  And this can be true – not only for the inexplicable feeling of grief but also feelings of anger, guilt, shame or fear that cannot be understood well enough from the individual life events. Even destructive behavioral patterns can be a result of entanglements with previous family members. Behaviors like addictions, uncontrolled aggression and so on.

How does a constellation take form?

The starting point of a constellation is the personal issue of the ‘client’.
A constellation can be done in a group or in an one on one setting. The constellation is led by a facilitator.
In my practice, I have a brief interview with the client before the group is involved. In that interview, I want to know more about the issue the client wants to bring in and facts of his family history. I don’t want the other participants of the workshop to hear those facts. Some facilitators take the interview in front of the other participants.
After making this inventory I, as a facilitator, suggest which key family members (or other elements involved in the clients question) will be represented in the constellation. Usually this is a representative of the client, one or more family members and an abstract concept such as ‘depression’ of ‘the addiction’ – depends on the issue the client brings in.
The client asks people from the group to stand in the constellation as representatives. The client arranges the representatives in space according to what feels right at the moment.
In the one on one setting in my practice – I work with puppets – and I as facilitator explore all the elements that are set up.

At the moment the representatives stand in – they will experience feelings and sensations that mirror the members they represent. As a facilitator, I observe their body language accurately. (the body doesn’t lie).
With what the representatives have to tell I work. The healing resolution for the issue is achieved after adding some more key members of the system, repositioning the representatives and giving and sharing some healing sentences or ritual actions.
The constellation and the healing process is concluded when all the representatives feel comfortable in the reconfigured family system.
I often give some homework after a constellation to keep on the healing process.

Does it only work with the person who is doing the constellation or also for the other family members?

A family constellation can bring insight into the dynamic behind the life issue of the client and bring healing to it. So that he can live healthier, happier and have a more fulfilled life. Usually, the benefits of a constellation take some time to unfold.But in a constellation, a whole family system is involved. The moment you restore the system, it will affect the other family members – even if they are unaware of what happened in a constellation. This can manifest itself, for example, as contact between family members is suddenly restored after a constellation.

How does someone know when a family constellation can help or give support?

I always say – when you have a certain problem and you have already looked at it from different perspectives, but it still hasn’t fully disappeared, or when you have a certain problem and you do not know where it comes from – then a constellation can be helpful.

How many constellations does a person need?

The issue of a certain moment can be solved with one constellation, only sometimes more constellations are necessary. And after some period new issues can come up.

How much time is there between different sessions?

I advise at least a time period of 3 months between different sessions.

How is it for a representative to represent?

First of all. Everybody can do that. You don’t need a special gift for this. Many people like to represent. By doing so they help someone else and most of the time helping feels good.
It may happen that someone represents a family member of the client with a similar issue as the person himself. Then representing the position of someone else awakens your own issue.

Does it happen that a representative sometimes cannot get rid of the energy he was representing?

That can happen. As the facilitator of a constellation you have to pay attention to that. If it turns out that someone still carries an energy of the constellation, you have to undo that. There are various methods for this.

What is Systemic Ritual?

Systemic Ritual is a different form of constellation work, enriched with elements of shamanic ritual. Systemic Ritual was developed by Daan van Kampenhout. He specialized in shamanism early in his life. In the 90s he came to know the work of Bert Hellinger – the Family Constellations. He was impressed by the depth and healing effect of family constellations.
The similarities and differences between shamanic rituals and family constellations fascinated him. During many years he has explored many combinations of aspects of constellations and elements of shamanic ritual, and out of these two he gradually developed a new method, now called Systemic Ritual®. Some similarities are:

A course in Systemic Ritual (online and live):

A course in Systemic Ritual
  • Time plays no role either in a shamanistic ritual or in a constellation. A constellation and ritual take place in space, in the here and now.
  • The healing effect applies to the whole system and not to one individual.
  • The healing effect is not so much based on the individual’s capability, but forces from outside are used – for example, an ancestor.
  • The deaths and the living have a role in family constellations as well as in shamanistic rituals. Both exist in the here and now. The deceased are only in a different ‘dimension’ or ‘world’.
  • We work with ‘healing sentences’, sentences with an archaic power – that speak to the unconscious and bring about a healing effect.
  • Both methods make use of representatives and healing sentences and actions.

The influence of shamanism can be seen in the sound of the drum, the ongoing prayers and the use of ground plans and fixed structures that guide the movement of the ritual.

Differences with family constellations

  • For working with Systemic Ritual, the exact details of a family system are not required.
  • In Systemic Ritual, compared with family constellations, the emphasis is more on the elements that give strength to a person.
  • In Systemic Ritual it can happen that people are asked to represent ‘healers’ or to represent power animals with certain qualities or distant ancestors (ancestors from the fifth, sixth or even 20th generation).
  • In Systemic Ritual we also work with the qualities of the four directions – a concept from shamanism (medicine wheel).
  • Furthermore Systemic Ritual encompasses different concepts. For instance the concept of the human being having many souls. In Systemic Ritual various souls and layers of the soul can be represented.

Connecting to resources

In Systemic Ritual, a connection is made with ‘resources’ – who or what can give support/strength to the client to enable a healing movement. In Systemic Ritual, people may be asked to represent ‘healers’ or power animals with certain characteristics or distant strength-giving ancestors. In Systemic Ritual, we also work with the qualities of the four directions or the multiple souls or bodies – concepts from several Shamanistic viewpoints.

The Wheel of the four directions forms one of the basic ground plans in which a systemic ritual takes place. The Wheel of the four directions works with the qualities of the four cardinal directions, which means no more than the conscious application of the universal cycle of ‘coming’ / ‘being’ / ‘going’ / ‘rest’ and all associated qualities. The Wheel brings order, depth, insight and balance on the mental, emotional and soul levels.

http://daanvankampenhout.com/systemic-ritual-geschiedenis-en-toekomst/

Systemic Ritual versus Family constellations versus Shamanism

Systemic Ritual is a method that Daan van Kampenhout developed out of thorough research of the combination of constellations and elements of Shamanic Ritual. The aim is to create healing by connecting to more expansive ancestral fields and their resources, strength and support. The focus of a Systemic Ritual is to activate support and resources within or outside ourselves.
Like in family constellations, Systemic Ritual uses the method of representation and archaic, healing sentences. Similar to Shamanic rituals, Systemic Ritual is often guided with the sound of the drum, prayers, ground plans, and fixed structures that guide the movements that occur in the ritual.
Systemic Ritual doesn’t focus on searching for the origin of an individual- or family problem and offering a solution. That is why for working with Systemic Ritual, knowing the exact details of a family system are not necessary. Systemic Ritual works with the abstract essence of a family story. An individual issue is translated to a collective theme. In that way, all participants can relate to it. This principle also achieves that the rituals not only help integrating individual problems but collective ones.
The community is seen as essential in this work. Systemic Ritual recognises and emphasises that an individual never stands alone but is always a part of a community.