Couple Therapy via Telehealth

Couple therapy: What to expect

Couple therapy provides a great opportunity for you to talk about your relationship in a different way than you would on your own. There are many approaches to couple therapy and many couple therapists out there, so even if you have tried couple therapy in the past, a new therapist may have another way of doing things.

At Have the Talk Counseling, I use a proven method called Integrative Behavioral Couple Therapy. While most couples come to therapy because they want something in their relationship to change, I believe that the most lasting changes come about when partners fully understand each other’s emotional and behavioral reactions and feel understood in return. As your couple therapist, I work with you to find the words that authentically describe your experience in a way that your partner can really hear and take in, and vice-versa. Approaching your areas of conflict or other stressors you face together from a place of true understanding can be a game-changer.

Couple therapy starts out with a short assessment period. For the first session, I meet with both partners together to gather information about your relationship and treatment goals. For the next two sessions, I meet with each partner individually to learn a little more about your personal histories. Finally, we come back together for a personalized feedback session, where I share my understanding of your relationship challenges and strengths and describe in more detail what it would look like to work with me. From here, we can decide together if my approach seems like a good fit for your needs and, if so, how frequently to schedule appointments.

I also offer an “intensive” option for couples who want to move through the assessment and early treatment phase more quickly. This includes a 2 hour assessment followed by a 2-3 hour feedback and intervention session, with a break between the assessment and feedback. This can be a good option for couples who are experiencing acute distress (e.g., managing a new major life stressor or the recent discovery of a betrayal), or have a very specific time-limited goal (e.g., problem-solving a particular hot button issue or implementing the Fair Play system), or simply have scheduling challenges (e.g., it is easier to find childcare/take off work for one day than on a weekly or bi-weekly basis).