Couples Therapy Overview

I always begin my couples work by thoroughly understanding your relationship. It won’t take months of sessions just trying to understand what is going wrong in the relationship. That will be very first. Before beginning ongoing couples therapy, I will learn about your relationship: How it started, how it’s going, and your goals for couples therapy.

You and your partner will individually take an online assessment that gives me essential information about your relationship across many dimensions. It will help me understand what you and your partner are experiencing currently, and have experienced in the past, both in the relationship and in your own personal history.

I will get to know you and your partner each better in an individual session. I will learn more about your relationship from your perspective by giving you a dedicated space to discuss your personal relationship history, experiences, and goals for your relationship. My goal in these sessions is to learn as much as I can about how you and your partner are struggling and what your relationship needs are.

You’ll leave this session knowing our plan for your relationship. This is a feedback session where I tell you and your partner what I see happening in your relationship: strengths, weaknesses, struggles, patterns, etc. Then I will present to you a clear, personalized plan for our couples work together. The plan includes the steps of couples therapy that we are working on so that you can reach your relationship goals.

When your relationship is in distress, I know that time is of the essence. My practice is intentionally structured around extended session lengths so that couples have adequate time to do the deep emotional work of connection and repair. In ongoing sessions, we follow our established treatment plan as our guide to revive your relationship. My style is to bring the direction and structure, as well as to constantly tailor the experience to you and your partner’s unique relationship needs. I will be frequently be checking in with you and your partner as collaborators in the process.