We all know how difficult it is to maintain a romantic relationship. They, like cars, need routine maintenance to keep them in good working order. If there is an issue, it is better to get it fixed as soon as possible to prevent further complications.
Other times, despite our best efforts, couples counselling could be the best choice, where a licensed therapist may evaluate our partnership and provide assistance.
We’re here to support you, regardless of how you identify yourself as being single, married, live together, single, homosexual, bisexual, heterosexual, or transgender.
Many people have a defined idea of what relationship counselling entails and believe that it is only necessary when things have reached a breaking point. But, no matter what situation you’re in with your partner, we at i-kare treatment center are here for you anytime you need us. Even if your issues seem to be minor, we will assist you.
What Is Couples Therapy?
Couples therapy is a form of psychotherapy in which a therapist with professional experience dealing with couples, most commonly a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT), uses a variety of psychological techniques to assist two individuals in a romantic relationship in gaining insight about their relationship, resolving tension and conflicts, and enhancing relationship satisfaction. Couples therapy can vary depending on the theoretical nature of the therapist, but all couples therapy appears to include the following general elements:
- Emphasizing on the particular problem. Dealing with problems like internet addiction, or jealousy)
- Active involvement on the therapist’s part in treating the relationship as a whole, rather than treating each person separately
- Early on in care, solution-focused, change-oriented approaches.
- Care targets must be clearly established.
More than 97 percent of surveyed couples said couples counselling helped them get the support they needed, according to research conducted by the American Association of Marriage and Family. Furthermore, 93 percent of couples said counselling provided them more powerful conflict-resolution resources.
Why is couple therapy essential?
Every relationship has a point of contention and conflict. Learning how to resolve disputes will not only help you resolve your problems, but it will also improve your relationship resulting in making it stronger.
A licensed psychologist works with two people in couples counselling to help them strengthen their relationship so that they can further lead a contented life.
Couples counselling, like any other form of therapy, demands both parties’ dedication and willingness to open up and the willingness to improve their relationship and making it work.
More than 98 percent of people viewed marriage and family therapy programs as decent or outstanding, according to the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.
Counseling doesn’t have to be a secretive process reserved for those “types” of people.
Getting couple therapy can help anyone who are in a relationship, irrespective of demographics like sexual orientation and age.
“Couples can form a more secure bond with one another and be able to have vulnerable conversations without pushing the other person away,” Hsueh says.
When committing to couples therapy, it is essential that you come with an open mind, and be ready to break down the barriers of communication that are destroying your relationship.
What are the benefits of couple therapy?
If you think there are certain problems in your relationship that needs to be addressed and resolved then couple therapy can be a great option for you.
No matter which situation or at what point of your relationship is stuck in, you can always reap benefits from participating in couple therapy and build a connection with your loved one.
The benefits of couple therapy can consist of:
- having a third-party mediator to help foster meaningful discussions
- finding new and innovative ways to connect with your partner in a different level
- lowering the relationship’s distress and dispute
- being thoughtful about your vocabulary and time
- setting aside time to work on improving your relationship
- providing a comfortable, calm atmosphere in therapy where you can easily address difficult topics
- putting into effect and practicing on strategies for enhancing mental and physical intimacy
- putting together action plans to put the relationship first above all
- recognizing and working around negative or detrimental patterns in your relationship
- regaining one another’s confidence and working on trust
- Establishing healthy boundaries in your relationship which you both can respect
- seeing a therapist who can detect underlying problems and feelings you aren’t aware of
- finding common ground and learning to relate to each other in a caring, kind way while feeling valued and listened to in your relationship
- Developing the ability to understand your own needs and interests in a relationship
What to Expect in Couples Therapy
Couples counselling typically starts with a set of standard interview questions about the relationship’s past, as well as an analysis of each partner’s family of origin, beliefs, and cultural context. If required, the therapist can use the first sessions to intervene in a crisis.
The couple therapist will then work with the couple to determine the problem that will be the subject of therapy, set treatment goals, and create a treatment plan.
During the recovery process, the therapist will assist the couple in understanding the relationship dynamics that are causing the issue, as well as and partner’s position in the dysfunctional interactions. This will assist them in altering their perceptions of the relationship and the way they perceive things and each other.
While gaining perspective is important, changing habits and ways of communicating with each other is also an important part of couples counselling. Couples therapists also give homework to help couples adapt what they’ve learned in counselling to their daily interactions.
Most couples may benefit from couples therapy by gaining insight into their relationship dynamics, increasing emotional expression, and developing the skills needed to interact and solve problems more effectively with their partners.
Who Should Pursue Couples Counseling?
Couples counselling can help with a number of problems, including:
- Relationships, whether straight or homosexual
- Relationships between races
- Relationships between teenagers and college students
- Relationships with a major age difference
- Every stage of a relationship, including dating, engagement, and marriage
Premarital counselling, for example, may be an invaluable opportunity for a newly engaged couple to discuss relationship desires before getting married. Another couple, who has been together for 25 years, may find that couples counselling or therapy is a successful way to rekindle the passion and romance in their relationship.
Couples Therapy may help a happy couple during a time of adjustment or heightened tension by fixing a current problem, preventing an exacerbation of problems, or simply offering a “check-up.” Income, parenting, sex, infidelity, in-laws, chronic health problems, infertility, gambling, and drug abuse are all common topics discussed in couples counselling.
Should I go to counseling or get a divorce?
If you are facing problems in your current relationship, then it is not necessary to go for a divorce directly. A person has various other options in mind to save the dying relationship. Working on your relationship by going for coupes therapy can save your struggling marriage. It can also improve a good marriage by making the bond much stronger than ever. If you have a desire to stay with your partner and you do not want to throw away or give up on your relationship that easily then going to couples therapy may be your best chance.
Couples counseling, or some may know it as marriage counseling could be your answer to heal old wounds and start fresh from a new beginning. There are various different benefits that accompany marriage counseling, particularly when it is done before considering a divorce or giving up what you built in so many years in just a blink of an eye. Counseling or therapy can be an expressive way to restore and save the foundation of the marriage and clarify whether divorce is the right option for you to go to.
Why Do Couples Delay in Receiving Therapy?
Regrettably, majority of the couples decide to go for couple therapy when a substantial amount of damage has already been done to the relationship and things have gotten worse.
The emotional bond that was once there in a relationship that was holding a marriage has already been so weakened that it is about to break and things have gotten worse beyond imagination. Due to unresolved past conflicts, many people feel resentful in saving the relationship hence the delay.
Research shows that an average couple is hopeless and struggling to remain happy for six years before deciding to seek couples counseling.
This does not indicate that couples therapy may be ineffective in resolving such long lasting and deeply engraved issues. It just means that it would be much more challenging and a thought provoking process which will require a great amount of dedication, commitment and effort by both the sides to save the relationship.
Misunderstandings about what couples therapy is and its purpose can also prevent couples from seeking help early on in their marriage when problems start to arrive.
Some people have the thinking that couples therapy is something to be considered when a person decides for a divorce or other such serious situations like infidelity or addiction. Many others may think of it as a last resort to go through when they have lost all hope and the determination to save the relationship.
Some individuals may even perceive it as a way to force their partner to adopt to changes because they think that the other person is the problem.
Although, many people have no idea or exposure about the benefits of couple therapy in resolving a wide range of relationship issues and problems. They simply are not aware of the fact that how helpful it can be at refining overall relationship satisfaction that affects individual mental health in numerous ways.
Reasons you may need couples therapy
When you finally decide that you want to seek help and consider going for couple therapy, you can easily start therapy beginning form any reason which is the reason of the conflict, distress, or mistrust between you or your partner.
Some general reasons couples may decide to seek therapy may be:
- the necessity to restore trust after infidelity or dishonesty which is a serious cause of concern
- to enhance physical and emotional intimacy if you’re feeling unsatisfied and if you think that is the underlying problem.
- to overcome previous trauma and learning how to deal with ones emotions
- going through a change together, for example parenthood or a big move that may be a period of tension.
- having diverse, contradictory views on how to parent and parenthood.
- to help manage substance use disorder or alcoholism and decider to opt for a recovery for one or both partners
- to learn more about the relationship, things that you never knew and prevent future misunderstandings
- Getting short of time that you have no time to offer to your loved ones.
- experiencing the grief of losing a loved one which might be a very disturbing event that may result in causing you trauma
- The urge to have fun within your relationship and reignite the lost spark in your relationship.
- If one partner is suffering from anger issues that make the relationship worse and makes it difficult to resolve conflict in a rational way.
- wanting to define the importance and seriousness of a relationship with the help of a mediator or a third party
- working through the process of infertility as it can prove to be very tough
- blended families and step-parenting which may cause issues between the couple
- career pressures and various job changes
- Financial problems can also play a major role in causing problems.
But in risky or terrible situations, mental health professionals may advise another path to choose from.
The Bottom Line:
No problem is considered too big or too small when we talk about therapy. Particularly when you are seeking help from an experienced licensed professional at i-kare treatment center.
From feeling detached to your partner or you feel you both are drifting awat to overcoming major problems like infidelity, exercises and techniques that are planned by licensed therapists can rehabilitate your relationship and improve your communication skills with eachother resulting a much improved way where you are able to talk about your problems with your partner.
At i-kare treatment center, you can get access to all the kinds of help and assistance that you desire to save your relationship. A relationship is built on trusy and loyalty. It is all about love and care and when you opt for couple therapy at i-kare treatment center, you tend to better your relationship and reach to a point where you can start from a new beginning.
