Couples
Counseling
Couples Counseling Specialists
“We are born in relationship, we are wounded in relationship, and we can be healed in relationship.” — Harville Hendrix, couples therapist and New York Times bestselling author
HOW COUPLES COUNSELING WORKS
Select Your Therapist
Choose from one of our highly-skilled, professionally trained, and certified therapists.
Schedule Your First Session
Schedule to meet with your therapist to discuss your goals and form a plan for success.
Start Therapy
Begin your journey towards getting the happy and healthy relationship you deserve.
Discover How Couples Counseling Can Help
While you and your partner may feel overwhelmed by your relationship struggles, it’s always possible to strengthen your connection and look forward to a more fulfilling future together. By putting in the time and effort to work on your partnership, you can build a foundation of empathy, love and companionship that can last a lifetime.
At Grow My Relationship, we offer couples therapy for all types of relationships including married couples, divorced or separated couples, gay/lesbian couples, polyamorous unions, single parents, teenagers, adolescents, adults & seniors. We also provide support for those who are struggling with depression, anxiety, addiction, grief, loss, trauma, and more.
If you’re ready to move past your problems and start living life more fully, connect with one of our practitioners today. We offer both in-person and online therapy sessions.
Who Should Consider Couples Counseling
- Monogamous
- Polyamorous
- Straight, Lesbian, Gay
- Interracial
- Interfaith
- Teenagers
- College Students
- Age-gap partners
- Dating
- Engaged
- Married
- Committed
- Cohabitants/Casual
- Questioning sexual orientation
Any relationship can benefit from couples therapy. Couples therapy can prevent small issues from turning into larger relationship problems. Relationships are hard, and having a counselor on hand can help you and your partner navigate through common stressors, including finances, sex, infidelity, parenting, extended family, health or medical problems, frequent conflict, lack of communication skills, falling out of love, addiction, and more.
If your relationship isn’t where you want it to be, couples therapy can help you get it there. Many people aren’t aware of how couples therapy can treat a wide array of issues and teach couples the skills to overcome problems and improve their relationship satisfaction. Couples therapy is a meaningful way to repair the foundation of your relationship and build a stronger emotional bond.
The Developmental Model Approach to Couples Counseling
The Developmental Model is a tested approach to couples counseling. Created by Dr. Ellyn Bader and Dr. Peter Pearson more than 30 years ago, the Developmental Model encourages you and your partner to view your relationship challenges as part of a natural and normal struggle for psychological growth and wholeness. Rather than seeing conflict between you and your partner as a problem or illness, this method motivates you to focus on the strengths of your relationship and encourages growth, change, and forward motion.
This internationally recognized method has benefitted tens of thousands of couples across the U.S. and worldwide, and draws hundreds of couples counselors each year to its acclaimed training programs sponsored by The Couples Institute based in Menlo Park, California. Many therapists trained in the Developmental Model can be found listed in Psychology Today and the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) as skilled therapists for adult relationships. Drawing in part on the research of Margaret Mahler, Fred Pine, Anni Bergman, and John Bowlby, the method holds that life is a developmental process in which we as humans are constantly challenged and continually growing.
Take a look at the Developmental Model stages here below:
Symobiosis
Differentiation
Exploration
Re-Connection
Synergy
Symobiosis
Differentiation
Exploration
Re-Connection
Synergy
Just as individuals evolve through normal developmental stages, so do couples. Maybe you and your partner are stuck in a particular developmental stage and have become focused on each other’s flaws. A counselor trained in the Developmental Model knows how to refocus you and your partner on the strengths that you have. The counselor will help you both build the motivation to do hard work on the relationship, not just in the room during the therapy session, but especially in your daily life together. This work is designed to help you develop the skills to move you both toward self-improvement and greater relationship satisfaction.
Start On Your Path To A Better Relationship
Skilled & Trained Couples Counseling Therapist
Our practitioners have the experience, training, and certification that you and your partner need. Relationship counseling can address a broad array of issues. Our therapists are trained to help you and your partner with the following therapy types:
- Individual therapy
- Group therapy
- Couples relationship coaching
- Marital therapy
- Couples life skills
- Prenuptial agreement preparation
- Parental guidance for couples
Your counselor will be prepared to help you address the following and other relationship issues:
- Abuse
- Anger/Behavioral change/Argument
- Loss of love/Drifting apart
- Relationship abuse
- Parenting issues
- Conflicts due to different cultural background
- Financial issues
- Sexual difficulties
- Communication issues
- Addiction - pornography, alcohol, drugs, gambling
Find a certified mental health practitioner who specializes in providing relationship help to couples just like you. Discuss your goals and treatment plan and discover the tools you need to begin your journey of growth. Restore passion, love, and confidence to get the healthy relationship you deserve.
So many couples experience what you are facing right now. Let us help you. If you and your partner are ready to gain a deeper understanding of each other and work toward a happy and fulfilling future together, please contact us to schedule your couples therapy free consultation. We are happy to answer your questions, address your concerns, and discuss how counseling can help you and your partner feel connected. We are committed to providing quality couples therapy to those suffering in their relationship.
Are You Ready For Couples Counseling?
You and your partner can benefit from couples counseling at any stage in your relationship. It can be helpful to start couples therapy before you run into problems in your romantic partnership. Many couples choose to do premarital counseling in order to get to know each other better and address any differences they may have so they’re less likely to become points of conflict later on. Premarital counseling is a great option for people in a serious relationship who are considering getting married.
Couples therapy can be a helpful resource when you’re going through any significant life event. Many couples struggle for months or even years with a particular problem, but it’s best to seek help sooner rather than later to have better results. Whether you are looking to strengthen your marriage or receive support as you build your life together, working with a skilled, certified therapist can be a real relationship saver!
Start On Your Path To A Better Relationship
How Can You Find A Couples Therapist?
It can be difficult and time consuming to find a highly skilled, well-trained therapist who is a good match with you and your partner. We make finding a therapist easy! All of our practitioners are vetted through our certification program, and are experienced in helping couples navigate many challenges. Whether you’re looking for premarital counseling, marriage counseling, discernment counseling, family therapy, financial therapy, or other forms of couples therapy, we can connect you with skilled practitioners to help you on your therapy journey.
There are many different approaches to couples therapy, including focused therapy (EFT), the Gottman method, and Imago relationship therapy, among others. Our counseling approach is different from others since our therapists are trained in the acclaimed Developmental Model approach, which helps couples move through different developmental stages of their relationship. Our practitioners will help you to set goals and to move at your own pace through this important work.
Change begins before the first couples therapy session. Utilizing the Developmental Model of Couples Therapy, you will learn the key steps towards creating happiness and rebuilding your trust for today and tomorrow. Choosing a couples counselor is an important decision. Contact us for couples therapy and restart your future today.
Expectations Of Couples Counseling
You and your partner will both need to work hard in order to see improvement in your relationship. If you are both committed to growing and developing together, you will likely see some positive changes and may enjoy greater happiness and intimacy. If one partner wants to grow and improve the relationship, but the other person does not, it may be worth asking about individual therapy.
During your sessions, your couples counselor or family counselor will work with you both to set goals for how you will address problems in your partnership. You’ll both need to remain open-minded and optimistic, with a commitment to learning new skills and seeing things from your partner’s perspective. It’s crucial for a married couple to take responsibility for their individual actions within the marriage, and to make necessary behavior changes in order to work toward the happy and healthy marriage they desire.
Set the goals that you want to achieve with your counselor during your initial counseling session. Remember that you are only one person in the relationship, and the other person needs to be heard as well. Along the way, check in with each other and make sure you both are still on the same page. It’s important to pay close attention to small changes and shifts in each other’s feelings. Even the tiniest progress is a step toward bigger improvement—both self improvement and in your relationship together!
About Grow My Relationship
We have put together a roster of highly-trained, certified practitioners so that couples in crisis have a convenient and discreet way to get help. Find a licensed clinical therapist anytime, anywhere, on your computer, tablet, or mobile phone.
Facing relationship challenges can seem daunting, and often it’s difficult to receive the help you need and deserve. We try to make this easier for you at Grow My Relationship. Support and guidance from a licensed professional therapist are just one click away.
Couples therapy is a specific type of therapy that requires specialized credentials and training. Our practitioners are licensed, trained, experienced, and accredited psychologists, licensed marriage and family therapists, and/or licensed clinical social workers. Each counselor listed in our directory is required to possess specific credentials (licenses, educational degrees, training, practice, specific experience for couples therapy, family therapy, etc.) including accreditation by the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT), and they each go through extensive training and mentoring before they can be included on our platform.
Our vision is to provide the most comprehensive and very best couples therapy available today. Our passion is to help identify, address, and offer proven solutions for relationship challenges so that couples can increase intimacy and develop the loving bond they deserve.
You do not have to be a “conventional” couple to seek therapy. As long as you are in an intimate relationship, our practitioners are here to help you get to a healthy and happy relationship.
Our Couples Counseling Can Help With:
- Inadequate communication
- Intimacy or sexual issues
- Anger management or verbal abuse
- Betrayal
- Feeling defeated or unhappy
- Physical or emotional affair
- Fear or mistrust
- Hopelessness or desperation
- Trauma
- Role of power/Controlling behavior
- Falling out of love
- Problems from childhood
- Empty nest syndrome
- Parenting conflicts
- Jealousy
- Drug or alcohol addiction
- Finance/Savings
- Decision making
- Compatibility conflicts
- Psychological growth/Personality characteristics
- Motivation/Priorities/Responsibility
- Commitment
- Gender identity
- Extended family conflicts
- Medical complications/Disease/Injury
- Family system problems
Frequently Asked Questions
Simply Click Here To Get Started and enter your information into the form fields. We will match you with a counselor, therapist, or relationship coach in your area and set up your first session.
It turns out that there will be too many therapists to predict what will happen for any given client – there are no standard protocols for initial meetings so describing what to expect w/o a standard protocol is basically impossible.
This is a common question and the answer is really quite subjective because most couples have different ideas of what makes for a good first meeting.
It is determined by emotional comfort level and does this person seem like an able guide for us. It boils down to: Do I want to or am I willing to return for another meeting? Imagine having a personal trainer after being out of shape for too long. If the trainer never made you sweat or exert yourself – just a nice slow easy workout where you didn’t stretch any unused muscles or break into even a mild sweat. And you thought all future workouts would be like this, you probably would question the long term benefits of such an approach.
Basically it’s “Are we willing to step up for another meeting?”
We have hundreds of practitioners specializing in the Developmental Model of Couples Counseling around the world. This makes it easier for you to find a qualified couples professional in your area who will be a good fit for you and your partner.
Couples therapy is a speciality that requires specialized training. If you needed heart surgery, it’s doubtful you would utilize a general practitioner who also does allergies, bunions, hip pain and a host of other human afflictions.
The fees for each session will vary based on where your therapist is located as well as other factors, including their years of experience.They don’t mind a bit when couples inquire about fees. You can also ask if they accept insurance.
This is our most frequently asked question. And there is no standard answer. It is like asking how long it will take to become rich. Or asking a physical trainer how long it will take for BOTH of us to get into shape.
Probably it’s no surprise that the timeline depends on motivation, how rapidly you apply what you learn and the magnitude of your relationship vision.
The key is that all three of you work as a team to create a flourishing relationship.
Many couples searching for help ask for the difference between these different types of professionals. As the field of helping couples create a better future evolves, so has the training available evolved.
Today the lines between the different categories of professionals are becoming more and more blurred. You can decide whether you prefer a coach, counselor, or therapist. Your choice might stem from their credentials, their location, or something from their bio that speaks to you.
All well-trained relationship specialists seek to offer advice, feedback, observations, and homework to help your relationship evolve. Therapists and counselors have mandatory educational and licensing requirements that are determined by the state or country in which they practice. Coaches do not.
Counselors and therapists may make situational determinations about how deep to go into the personal history of each partner. They may seek to help you see where certain unhelpful patterns of behavior originated.
No one can change the past, but you can change the impact it has on you. You can learn to free up more of your energy, talents, skills and gifts. Even better, when you harvest the lessons of the past, they can become wisdoms to guide your future – individually and together. Coaches, on the other hand, tend to focus on the present and creating an inspired future.
Our site will enable you to choose a professional who has invested time, energy, and money into learning how to help couples evolve. They have completed at least a 12-month training program in the Developmental Model, a comprehensive program taught by respected pioneers and leaders in this field. They also have a minimum of three years of experience working with couples.
Our professionals can guide you to clarify your individual goals as well as enable you to develop mutually agreed upon and supported relationship goals. As you know, this is not an easy task when you and your partner are struggling to communicate, cooperate, and connect. This is where a highly trained guide is especially valuable.
Appointments can be done with both of you present or can be done individually, depending on your situation. And they can be done with the coach, counselor, or therapist of your choice, given your location.
Things to know about insurance coverage:
As a general rule, our practitioners do not accept payment from insurance companies. However, they may be happy to provide you with a super bill or receipt to submit to your insurance for a possible reimbursement. We recommend that you check with your insurance provider first to inquire what services are covered. We also advise that you speak with your practitioner directly regarding their policy on insurance.- Health records may not be confidential once insurance is involved.
- Before any services are covered, someone needs a mental health disorder diagnosis and in most cases, this diagnosis can be used against you when getting certain jobs, future health insurance or life insurance benefits, as well as possible legal/court issues.
- You will need to pay the full session fee. You may obtain reimbursement if the practitioner is willing to provide a receipt of services, but any reimbursement you receive is between you and your provider.
- Flexible spending accounts and flex cards are an alternative option. If you have tax-free money deducted from your paycheck for Medical Savings, you can use that towards your session expense.
Things to know about insurance coverage:
As a general rule, our practitioners do not accept payment from insurance companies. However, they may be happy to provide you with a super bill or receipt to submit to your insurance for a possible reimbursement. We recommend that you check with your insurance provider first to inquire what services are covered. We also advise that you speak with your practitioner directly regarding their policy on insurance.- Health records may not be confidential once insurance is involved.
- Before any services are covered, someone needs a mental health disorder diagnosis and in most cases, this diagnosis can be used against you when getting certain jobs, future health insurance or life insurance benefits, as well as possible legal/court issues.
- You will need to pay the full session fee. You may obtain reimbursement if the practitioner is willing to provide a receipt of services, but any reimbursement you receive is between you and your provider.
- Flexible spending accounts and flex cards are an alternative option. If you have tax-free money deducted from your paycheck for Medical Savings, you can use that towards your session expense.
