Couples Therapy

Couples seek therapy for a variety of reasons at many stages of their relationships. Sometimes they may feel that it is too late and that therapy is a last resort to see if the relationship can be salvaged.

Whether your relationship is newer and you are seeking to make sure it gets off to a solid start, your relationship is facing a new life transition or stressor, or you have contemplated ending the relationship, couples therapy can support you in moving forward in an intentional and purposeful way.

We tailor sessions to the specific needs of each couple and are committed to fostering hope that change is possible- the couple just needs support to make it happen! Rather than problematizing one individual, our therapeutic approach works to identify and understand the interpersonal dynamics as well as the context that creates and exacerbates the problems or challenges which the couple is facing.

From our very first session, we will collaboratively identify goals and areas of focus that reflect each partners’ hopes and desires for the relationship. You will leave each session with new tools, strategies, and perspectives to address challenges and enrich your relationship.

We believe that the therapeutic process has the potential to empower couples to take on the challenges they face in their lives and to create the changes they wish to make. Common reasons that couples seek therapy can include:

Pandemic Relationship Support

The Covid-19 pandemic has created challenges for all couples—even those who were doing really well prior to the pandemic. All of a sudden, many couples are simultaneously juggling work demands, schooling and family life within the confines of their own homes. This can leave little space for quality time and intimacy— even when we feel like we are constantly together.

Other couples are navigating childcare challenges or the stressors associated with public facing, front line, or essential work positions. Couples may be experiencing conflict due to differences in how each partner views decisions regarding pandemic safety precautions, and this can lead to a great deal of distress. Couples may be facing grief related to the loss of loves ones, financial stressors, the loss of social support and contact with friends and family, and loss of a sense of normalcy due to restrictions on activities that were once considered routine.

Many couples are feeling unprepared in handling these challenges, and are feeling dissatisfied with the state of their relationships. Couples therapy can help you to get back on the same page, cope with these ongoing challenges, and foster intimacy and connection despite the ongoing stressors you are facing.

Pre-marital Therapy

Pre-marital therapy is a time for discovery and understanding. Whether you are a couple planning a marriage ceremony, or a couple committing to life partnership, pre-marital therapy is a wonderful opportunity to bring more clarity about you and your partner, the difficulties that may arise, and the life you desire to create together. When preparing for relational commitment, couples often believe that they already have the tools to navigate decisions and challenges as they arise. They may believe that they will easily find themselves on the same page as they face important decisions or life transitions. However, this is frequently not the case, and couples can find themselves at odds over important issues which can lead to larger conflicts in the relationship down the road.

Pre-marital sessions initiate conversations about important topics and guide couples through constructive conversations about these topics as a starting place for getting and staying on the same page. Sessions also assist couples with communication strategies to facilitate ongoing dialogues about these topics when they arise outside of session and down the road.  Common pre-marital session topics include: family planning, relational agreements, finances, health (physical, mental and emotional), extended family, religion/faith, career, sex and intimacy, and effective communication.

If you and your partner are already married, it’s not too late! Our therapists can guide you through these important topics and help you to prepare for your future together!

****Six Session Pre-Marriage Package….. $940.00****

Effective Communication & Conflict Resolution

Many couples seek therapy due to complaints of repetitive fights, poor communication, lack of understanding, and challenges with intimacy. They report feeling disconnected, un-heard and misunderstood. They feel angry and isolated within the relationship, and are unsure how to get back on track. Separation or divorce may have been threatened, but there is still a desire to see if things can work out. Couples therapy assists the couple in learning to effectively communicate, prevent damaging fights through de-escalation techniques, and repair the damage from past conflicts.

Relational Enhancement

We frequently see couples that desire to enhance their relationships by gaining the skills to do things a bit better or a bit differently. These are couples that are doing preventive work to strengthen the relationship before troubles become too large and overwhelming. They may have overcome past conflicts and wish to ensure that they have the skills to better face future challenges.

Couples therapy can assists couples who want to build their connection by increasing the openness and intimacy in their relationship. Couples therapy can also support the couple that would like to understand the assumptions they make about their roles (such as gender roles) in the relationship and how these roles impact their relationship satisfaction. Couples therapy can also support couples in periods of transition and change to ensure that these changes are manageable for the couple and that they feel that they can work together to navigate them in preferred  and connection fostering ways.  

Separation Support

Therapy can be an important source of direction and support for a couple after a decision to separate has been made. We believe that these are difficult and straining times and the support found in sessions is not only beneficial but often needed. We find the therapy can especially useful when the separating couple has children who are affected by their decision making processes. Therapy brings both parental and children’s interests into the conversation so that better decisions can be made for the entire family, not for the sake of revenge or resentment.

Infidelity

Continuing a relationship after an affair is a difficult period for a couple. Feelings of anger, betrayal, hurt, and sadness are often present and extreme. The couple may struggle with the decision to continue the relationship or to simply have it end. Therapy will focus on both short and long term goals around anger reduction, information sharing, setting new boundaries, addressing the history and details of the affair, responsibility, and rebuilding the lost confidence and trust.

Intimacy

Intimacy comes in all shapes and sizes, and it is not purely sexual in nature. If you are interested in deepening your connection with your partner, couples therapy can improve emotional, physical, and sexual intimacy. Rekindle the passion in your relationship as well as in the bedroom!

Consensual Non-monogamy

Family Planning