Couples / Couples+

Communication is complicated in the best of circumstances.

She watched them go. That cavernous ache inside was familiar, and the tears welling up were old friends. “Run after them,” she thought, “Try once more – be clearer, and less emotional.”

But the tears were already there, and the car was warming up. Snow was falling.

So many hopes and dreams hanging in the quiet, bleak morning air.

The worst part is it’s not just one person’s heartache.

It’s everyone’s heartache.

It’s the children, nephews, nieces, friends, parents…

The list goes on and seems endless. Sometimes it makes one wonder – how do living things come back to life after a long, cold, brutal winter?

Healing Happens

In couples therapy, there are different reasons people have decided to take the leap and ask for professional help.

My role as a therapist is to be an educated, calm observer, carefully expanding and building a competency for long after our work is done.

Over the years, I have learned how to increase the chances of clients being heard by one another, conveying their deepest truths, and moving forward toward repair.

Repair is actually the key.

Every relationship has its own version of rupture. Problems are rarely the same from relationship to relationship.

We discover together what your relationship holds for boundaries, expectations, communication styles, and histories – and all of this adds up to a very unique picture.

I draw from the work of John and Julie Gottman, Terry Real PhD, Esther Perel, Stan Tatkin PsyD, MFT, and others.

We will assess your situation according to your past experiences, your current day-to-day life, and dreams for the future. Then we can move forward into imagining goals and pathways to meet those goals.

The Many Faces of Love

Today there are many communities where people look beyond the traditional life as a couple. Couples try opening up relationships in different ways and with varying boundaries.

Many couples thrive in poly-amorous arrangements, yet still run into understandable difficulty relationally that needs help and support.

Even within open relationships, boundary lines can be crossed and people left feeling crushed by their own or another’s choices.

Whether a family is blended, poly, religious, or a single-parent household – the bottom line is the same.

Families are made up of people who try their very best to love each other.

Sometimes it’s excruciating to find our way in the vast open space of love and relating.

But it’s a smart investment to find lasting change.

After all, what’s the rest of your life worth?