Show Notes
Welcome to Elevator Systems! For the last episode of our season on relationships across the lifespan, we will be looking at Bowen family systems theory and death. Priscilla Friesen joins hosts Dixie Vandersluys and Katie White to talk about her personal and professional perspective.
Priscilla Friesen is a family consultant who trained as a licensed clinical social worker. She was introduced to Bowen theory in 1976 and has spent years at the Bowen Center where her responsibilities have included: administrator of Biofeedback Programs, Director of the Postgraduate Training Programs, developing meetings, presenting and teaching. Priscilla has a special interest in biofeedback and neurofeedback and how physiological reactivity is regulated in relationships. Priscilla has also worked to make Dr. Bowen’s archival legacy available to the world, working with the Bowen family since his death in 1990 and serving on the board of directors of The Murray Bowen Archives Project today.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode: The many relationships impacted by the death of a family member. Ways death is regulated within the family system. The variation in how families handle death provides valuable information about the family system. What an open system is and how it’s useful to a family around death. The adjustment of roles in the family after a death and the emergence of family leaders. Examples include: personal stories, estate planning and family discussions, the grief of Queen Victoria and her family life.
This episode is for anyone interested in thinking about death from a systems perspective and anyone who works professionally with families that are facing death, grief and loss.
Terms you don’t understand? We have episodes on all 8 concepts of Bowen theory and other ideas in Elevator Systems Seasons 1 & 2.
Recommended Resources: The Murray Bowen Archives Project Dr. Murray Bowen: Family Therapy in Clinical Practice Dr. Jenny Brown: Growing Yourself Up Death and Chronic Illness in the Family, Ed. Peter Titelman & Sydney K. Reed Living Beyond Loss: Death in the Family, Ed. Froma Walsh & Monica McGoldrick Family Matters The Relationships We Live In podcast: https://rss.com/podcasts/episode-1-the-relationships-we-live-in/
Thanks for listening to Season 3! A special episode to wrap up Season 3 will be released in the coming weeks! Look for Season 4 of Elevator Systems in early 2026.
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Living Systems Counselling and Training provides educational material for those interested in learning more about Bowen family systems theory: https://livingsystems.ca
Key Topics: #BowenFamilySystems #LivingSystems #MurrayBowen #Therapy #SystemsThinking #Death #Dying #Grief #Loss #Mourning #Funeral #Goodbye #Communication #Estates #Plans #Aging #MentalHealth #Relationships #TherapyPodcast #DifferentiationOfSelf #Differentiation #Family #BowenTheory #ElevatorSystems #FamilySystemsTheory #ElevatorSystemsPodcast #MurrayBowenArchives #TMBAP #TheMurrayBowenArchivesProject
DISCLAIMER: This podcast is general information about Bowen family systems theory and is not considered the practice of counselling or therapy. The information presented are the views of the people who say them. Any information used from this podcast is used at your own risk
More from Elevator Systems - Bowen Family Systems Theory
This episode explores how to hold on to systems thinking in everyday life and relationships. Dr. Kathleen Smith, Katie, and Dixie share practical ways to widen the lens, stay curious, and notice patterns instead of assigning blame. Through examples from family transitions, clinical work, and stories from books and television, they discuss how small practices—like observing emotional process, asking different questions, and focusing on your own choices—can help make systems thinking more accessible. Dr. Kathleen Smith joins us from Washington DC where she’s a licensed therapist and writer. Her two books are Everything Isn't Terrible and True to You, and she also writes the popular online newsletter, The Anxious Overachiever. Kathleen is a faculty member at the Bowen Center. Resources: Dr. Kathleen Smith - The Anxious Overachiever newsletter Dr. Kathleen Smith - Everything Isn’t Terrible Dr. Kathleen Smith - True to You Anthony J. Wilgus, “Mom’s Committed Suicide: Now What?” In Titelman & Reed, Ed., Death and Chronic Illness in the Family Roberta M. Gilbert, MD - Extraordinary Relationships Anne S. McKnight, EdD - Thinking Systems Oct 23rd Living Systems Conference, Thinking Big About Family Challenges 2027 International Conference, July 7-9, 2027 Nov 6-7th Bowen Center 63rd Annual Symposium Living Systems Counselling and Training Want to speak with a counsellor? Contact us Season 5 episodes will be released every two weeks from Tuesday October 6th til the International Conference in July of 2027. Buy us a “coffee” at https://ko-fi.com/elevatorsystems and support the production of the podcast! Terms you don’t understand? We have episodes on all 8 concepts of Bowen theory and other ideas in Elevator Systems Seasons 1 to 4. Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts. Like, subscribe, and comment. Living Systems Counselling and Training provides educational material for those interested in learning more about Bowen family systems theory: https://livingsystems.ca Key Topics: #BowenFamilySystems #LivingSystems #MurrayBowen #SystemsThinking #Patterns #MentalHealth #Relationships #TherapyPodcast #DifferentiationOfSelf #Differentiation #Therapy #BowenTheory #ElevatorSystems #FamilySystemsTheory #ElevatorSystemsPodcast DISCLAIMER: This podcast is general information about Bowen family systems theory and is not considered the practice of counselling or therapy. The information presented are the views of the people who say them. Any information used from this podcast is used at your own risk
Elevator Systems is back for Season 5. This season’s theme connects with the Bowen Theory International Conference happening in Vancouver, BC (and online) in July 2027. The conference title is Bowen Theory Beyond Borders: Exploring Current Applications and Growing Global Connections. See the link below for more information on that conference. Season 5 welcomes Bowen thinkers and practitioners from around the globe to discuss different areas they are using and expanding the theory. Dixie Vandersluys is a Canadian Certified Counsellor based in Manitoba, Canada. She has undergraduate degrees in history and philosophy and a Master of Arts in Counselling from Providence Theological Seminary. Dixie enjoys seeing clients across Canada in her private practice and doing workshops with different groups. Dixie is a faculty member at Living Systems and the creator and host of the Elevator Systems podcast. Katie White is a Marriage and Family Therapist registered in the US and Canada. She has been working with individuals, couples and families in schools, clinics, and non-profit centres for twenty years in the US, Australia and Canada. In 2010, Katie began focusing her practice using Bowen family systems theory and has attended the Post-Graduate Program at the Bowen Center. Katie is currently the Executive Director of Living Systems in Vancouver Canada. Katie teaches and supervises interns there, as well as managing a private practice. Season 5 episodes will be released every two weeks from Tuesday October 6th til the International Conference in July of 2027. Buy us a “coffee” at https://ko-fi.com/elevatorsystems and support the production of the podcast! Terms you don’t understand? We have episodes on all 8 concepts of Bowen theory and other ideas in Elevator Systems Seasons 1 to 4. Resources: Kerr & Bowen, Family Evaluation 2027 International Conference, July 7-9, 2027 Oct 23rd Living Systems Conference, Thinking Big About Family Challenges Nov 6-7th Bowen Center 63rd Annual Symposium Living Systems Counselling and Training Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts. Like, subscribe, and comment. Living Systems Counselling and Training provides educational material for those interested in learning more about Bowen family systems theory: https://livingsystems.ca Key Topics: #BowenFamilySystems #LivingSystems #MurrayBowen #SystemsThinking #Relationships #TherapyPodcast #DifferentiationOfSelf #Differentiation #Therapy #BowenTheory #ElevatorSystems #FamilySystemsTheory #ElevatorSystemsPodcast
The Season 4 bonus episode is a conversation with Dr. Anne McKnight on beliefs, relationships, and Bowen family systems theory. It looks at how emotional pressures influence how people think, act, and believe, and how slowing down, getting curious, and examining one’s position in a relationship system can help clarify beliefs and how one wants to live out beliefs.
This episode explores how money is linked to family and relationship processes. Kathy Wiseman shares her personal and professional experience from across the decades in a conversation about how Bowen family systems theory is helpful for individuals, families, and organizations to be more thoughtful about their financial situations, struggles, and goals.
This episode discusses Bowen family systems theory and sexual diversity. Kent Webb joins to share his personal journey and research on the topic. The conversation explores how curiosity and open dialogue can encourage understanding and growth in relationships as well as in Bowen theory itself.