Family-Focused Therapy for Parents & Teens in Washington

When the people you love the most feel the hardest to reach, therapy can help you find your way back to each other.

Virtual counseling for families and adolescents in Washington State.

Get in touch with me

Conflict at home doesn’t mean something is broken.

Family-focused therapy is for parents and their older teens (16+) and young adults who love each other but keep landing in the same painful loops. The slammed doors. The conversations that turn into arguments before anyone means them to. The distance that grows a little wider each week.

Adolescence and the years right after it ask a lot of a family. Kids are becoming their own people while still needing you. That shift is normal, and it's hard. When communication breaks down, it's rarely because anyone stopped caring. It's usually because the old ways of connecting stopped fitting who everyone is becoming.

This is collaborative work. No one gets cast as the problem. Together, we build understanding, healthier communication, and better ways of moving through conflict, so home feels like a place everyone wants to be again.

A woman with blonde hair and blue eyes smiling, with arms crossed, wearing a denim jacket over a white top with small anchor prints, standing against a plain white background.

Why families choose to work with me

I'm Sara Bickerstaff, LMHC. I offer steady, experienced support for your whole family.

30+ YEARS WITH FAMILIES - I’ve spent more than 30 years working with adolescents and families (16+ of those as a therapist). I understand teen development and the family dynamics of these years from the inside out.

NO ONE IS THE PROBLEM - Family therapy isn't about assigning blame. I create a respectful, supportive space where every person is heard, so the family can work as a team instead of taking sides.

FULLY VIRTUAL, STATEWIDE - All sessions happen online from anywhere in Washington. No commuting, no waiting room, no coordinating rides for a busy teen. Just showing up together from home.

LEARN MORE ABOUT ME

How we’ll work together

01

Reach out

Start with the contact form and share a little about your family and what's been happening at home. It helps the starting point of our first conversation.

02

Work together

In virtual sessions, I help parents and teens or young adults understand each other, communicate more openly, and work through conflict without it escalating.

03

Rebuild connections

Families will leave with practical tools and a stronger connection, so you can keep navigating the hard conversations even after therapy ends.

Some of the issues families bring to therapy sessions

Individual therapy for teens and young adults (16+) is available, too, when a young person needs a space that's just their own.

Communication that keeps breaking down between parents and teens or young adults

A teen or young adult navigating anxiety or the pressures of this stage of life

Feeling disconnected from a child who used to feel close

Ongoing conflict that turns small moments into big arguments

The rocky transition toward independence and college

Relationship challenges with parents and with peers

Common questions before you reach out

  • It's for families with older teens or young adults (16+) who are working through communication challenges, ongoing conflict, or the changes that come with growing up and growing apart. I work with families and also offer individual therapy for teens and young adults when that's the better fit.

  • No. I work with adolescents and young adults ages 16 and older, and their families. For younger children, I’m glad to point you toward clinicians who specialize in that age group.

  • Yes. Renewed Hope Counseling Services is fully virtual, serving families throughout Washington State. Sessions happen over secure video from wherever everyone is, which is often easier than getting a whole family to the same office at the same time.

  • Not necessarily. Some families come in together for every session. Sometimes it makes sense to meet with a parent, a teen, or a young adult individually along the way. I will talk through what makes sense for your family and adjust as the work unfolds.

  • Family therapy is private-pay. I can walk you through what that looks like before you begin, so there are no surprises.

  • Please complete the contact form on my website. Share a little about your family and what you'd like to work on, and I will follow up to talk through next steps.

I believe that home can feel like a safe place for your family to land again.

YOU DON’T HAVE TO DO THIS ALONE.

Get started with virtual family-focused therapy for parents, teens and young adults (16+) anywhere in Washington State.

Start with the Contact Form