Couples Therapy
Let’s do this together.
Get to the heart of the matter
Let’s start with honesty. Not the barbed kind, but the kind that allows you to be heard and understood.
When we start getting honest, we can get to the heart of the matter. We can start to develop real understanding, and, no matter how disparate the perspectives seem, when we understand them, we can sort them out.
My job is to help get you out of a winning or losing perspective. Both partners lose if one partner wins! Relationships thrive when we can arrive at nuanced perspectives that allow both people to consistently feel cared for and valued.
Healthy Habits
We all develop relationship habits from our childhoods. Some of our habits are caring and kind, but some of our habits can be unconscious (i.e., outside of our own awareness) and unconsciously detrimental.
I can help you gain awareness of what you’re doing in the relationship (both productively and detrimentally) so you can start handling yourselves and each other with more conscious care, and start taking steps that move you in the direction of greater health and growth.
What can you get out of couples counseling?
Here are some of the things couples learn with me:
How to listen (really listen!)
How to understand your relationship’s patterns of conflict
How to give feedback that your partner can hear
How to respond to feedback non-defensively
How to have difficult conversations without getting aggressive or withdrawn
How to accept and respect important differences
How to communicate in ways that foster greater intimacy
How to repair trust if trust has been broken
How to prioritize the relationship and give it value
How to respect both your individual needs and the needs of the relationship
How to prioritize pleasure
How to clearly say “Yes”
How to hold firm and kind boundaries
How to create habits that make your partner feel cherished and loved
My client couples learn how to work through conflict and return to the connection.
It’s not always easy, but it’s worth every bit of the effort.