Couples therapy is for couples wanting to improve certain aspects of their relationship. The emphasis in couples therapy is on collaborative growth and fostering empathic understanding in a relationship while working through issues that are interfering with the harmony in the relationship. Couples therapy can be beneficial in different stages of a relationship, from the early dating stage to the pre-marital, marriage or committed relationship stage. Here you can explore your options for couples therapy.
COUPLES THERAPY OPTIONS
In-Person & Remote Options
Choose the couples therapy option that best suits your needs.
PRE-MARITAL COUNSELLING
Premarital Counselling strengthens intimacy, enhances healthy communication, and helps couples discuss important relationship topics as they formalise their commitment to one another. Many couples don’t discuss significant areas of their relationship prior to commitment. Premarital counselling can give a couple support and guidance about areas of relational functioning that will strengthen their foundation and provide a healthy framework for their relationship.
MARRIAGE COUNSELLING
Sometimes couples get stuck in unhelpful patterns of relating to each other. They feel distant, unhappy or dissatisfied, and unsure how to move forward successfully. When stuck in a negative cycle a couple may remember how good their relationship used to feel, but they are unsure how to get that feeling back. Couples Therapy can help a couple to get back on track in their relationship.
RELATIONSHIP COUNSELLING
From time to time couples can experience challenges they cannot resolve. Each partner feels hurt, frustrated, and lonely; and, despite multiple attempts to resolve the issues, they just can’t seem to make progress. They may consider Couples Therapy to help a couple understand their chronic challenges in new ways. Through Couples Therapy, a couple can develop an understanding of the important emotional needs present in the relationship and work towards having those needs met.
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DEALING WITH DIFFICULT ISSUES
INFIDELITY
When a couple faces infidelity or another significant betrayal in their relationship, they will experience significant distress. Seeking professional support from a therapist trained in helping couples in these situations is an important and healing step to take. With some guidance, a couple can manage to work through a betrayal and grow stronger in their relationship. This journey is not an easy one though. It will require dedication and commitment from both partners to work towards healing in the relationship.
CONFLICT
Experiencing high levels of conflict in a relationship can be emotionally draining and exhausting. Continued unresolved conflict can cause a relationship to deteriorate over time. Avoiding conflict is not a solution. A couple should rather work towards conflict resolution. This may however require the guidance of a couples therapist. Unresolved conflict that has built up over an extended period of time can often lead to a breakup.
INTIMACY
Intimacy is often a sensitive topic in a relationship. When a couple faces intimacy issues it may actually point towards other areas of their relationship that are not healthy. A couple can often mistake the lack of intimacy in their relationship for the lack of physical attraction they have for their partner. The truth however that attraction in a relationship is much more complex. A couple needs to pay attention to the extent that they are emotionally intimate and attracted to each other. A deeper level of emotional closeness and intimacy may lead to a deeper level of physical closeness and intimacy. Explore having a deeper emotional connection in your relationship and see how it impacts your level of physical intimacy. If you struggle to develop a deeper emotional connection in your relationship reach out and get some guidance from a couples therapist.
ANGER
Anger is an emotion that can be difficult to manage in any situation. In relationships, it can be especially challenging to manage anger due to the close and intimate nature of the relationship. It’s important to learn how to recognise, manage, and control anger in relationships.
There are many causes of anger in relationships. Some of the most common causes of anger include feelings of being hurt, frustrated, neglected of bullied in the relationship. Other causes of anger in relationships can include power struggles, unresolved issues, miscommunication, and unmet needs. Intense and prolonged anger can create animosity and resentment in a couple’s relationship.
Signs of anger can include raised voices, increased body tension, and aggressive behaviour. It’s important to recognise these signs and take steps to manage the anger before it gets out of control and becomes a pattern in the relationship.
SHOULD I STAY OR SHOULD I GO?
One of the most difficult questions in a relationship is ‘should I stay or should I go?’.
In life we usually have a few ways of approaching a problem. We can accept things for what they are, or we can get out of the problematic situation. But we can also accept that we can not change certain things and place our focus rather on the things that we can change. The better questions to ask in a relationship is ‘can things change?’ and ‘What can change in my relationship that will make it good enough for me to stay?’
These are questions that you can explore in couples therapy with a couples therapist.
BREAKING UP
It’s hard to do. One of the most painful human experiences is the sense of loss. And a relationship break up can sometimes leave one with a deep sense of loss and hurt. The reality is that some relationships deteriorate to the extent where it causes more harm than good. This might bring a couple to a crossroads where breaking up may be better than continue being in a harmful or abusive relationship.
Breaking up is a process rather than an event. It may be challenging to untangle oneself emotionally from another. Social and emotional factors as well as the level of past investment in the relationship are all factors to consider during a breakup. A couples therapist may offer assistance and support during such a difficult time.
HOW CAN COUPLES THERAPY HELP?
Couples Therapy can help a couple:
- Learn effective communication skills.
- Deal with specific past issues.
- Develop a deeper sense of connection.
- Find conflict resolution strategies.
- Re-build trust.
- Enhance a couple’s coping abilities.
- Get clarity about the future direction of the relationship.
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BENEFITS OF ONLINE COUPLES THERAPY
Online Couples Therapy delivered via an online video conferencing platform has many potential benefits:
- Accessibility
- Time
- Privacy
- Home comforts
- Cost
- Electronic sharing of info
The main benefit of online couples therapy is that the couple can access couples therapy from different locations. Another major benefit is that online couples therapy usually allows more flexibility for people who have busy schedules.
WHAT IS SCHEMA COUPLES THERAPY?
Schema Couples Therapy is a therapeutic approach that explores the way a couple has developed their sense of self and how they relate to themselves and each other. Semi structured specific objectives both learning and practicing new skills. It is particularly concerned with psychological needs and how they present in a relationship as well as how a couple responds to and expresses those needs in the relationship. The focus is placed on schemas underlying behavioural and emotional patterns in a relationship. Read more about Schema Couples Therapy…
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HOW TO HAVE FUN AS A COUPLE
Sometimes the best thing you can do to rekindle the love in your relationship is to turn the focus from your problems to having fun. Bringing some excitement and into your relationship can greatly increase the sense of connection and passion. Small changes can make a big difference.
Here are some ways to introduce some fun in your relationship.
- Spend an evening telling each other jokes.
- Go to a concert together.
- Have a games night.
- Host a dinner party for friends.
- Take up a new hobby.
- Have a picnic.
- Plan a romantic getaway.
- Have a spa day.
- Take a cooking course together.
There are so many fun things to do as a couple. Challenge yourself and see if you can work through this list in a month. By having fun and making time out for each other a couple can strengthen their connection and build a healthy and exciting relationship.