a family genogram?

[Italiangreyhound]

Hi chap/esses

Our social worker has said she would like to do a family genogram, any idea what that might entail and how detailed it might be, please?

Thanks so much...

[Lilka]

A genogram is like a family tree, a diagram showing your family relationships, but it's more detailed and includes symbols to show things like, how family members relate to each other etc. Social workers use them to evaluate emotional/social relationships within a family. Other genograms are health ones with symbols for depression, cancer, Alzheimers and so on which health professionals use. So it will look like a cluttered family tree with more lines and symbols than normal.

Because they can be complicated, I'd focus on only your close relatives (like parents, grandparents, siblings, neices/nephews, cousins, aunts/uncles and that's about it) and then any further out relatives who will be involved with your adopted child and you will be seeing

So your genogram would have specific lines and symbols for - seperation, divorce, birth children, adopted children, miscarriages and abortions. But also, in relationship/emotional terms, line representing - hostile relationships, distant relationships, abusive relationships, very close relationships etc. the idea is that the SW can see who in your family you are close to, if you have drifted apart or fight a lot with a particular relative and so on. You can then use it as a base to discuss your family relationships

There's quite a bit online about it, so just look it up and you'll get a list of all the symbols for different relationships plus guidance on drawing it :)

[Italiangreyhound]

Thanks Lilka, I will pm you.

[FamiliesShareGerms]

I don't think we had to do symbols! Maybe we didn't do it properly...!

We had to do basically a family tree, but including close friends and others whom we see regularly. More of a spider gram. We had to include detail on how we know them, how often we see them, and their age and ethnic background.

[Italiangreyhound]

Did you draw it or work on it with your s.w?

[Italiangreyhound]

Thanks for replying Lilka and Families.

[FamiliesShareGerms]

I think SW gave us a template to start us off, we pulled it together and then talked it through with her in one of our home study sessions

[Italiangreyhound]

It was all fine, the social worker drew/wrote it for us, it was only my and hubby's immediate family.