Links to the past and to wider social issues in a family assessment

The case material presented in this chapter is designed to demonstrate our way of “working through” with a family and in particular how we use interpretation. We present a family who sought help from us, as co-therapists, about the conflict in handling their toddler daughter. The couple had been married for eight years. Mrs Wall, a teacher, is now at home with her daughters, Margaret, 16 months old, and Lizzie, four years. Captain Wall is in the military service. As parents the Walls found the pregnancy and raising the first child quite easy, but are reeling from the second pregnancy and care of their difficult-to-soothe toddler Margaret.