Couples Therapy

“The quality of your relationships ultimately determines the quality of your life” — Esther Perel

You want to have better communication, but you keep getting stuck in a similar pattern. Perhaps you and your partner find yourselves in a recurring argument again and again, about how one person wants closeness and the other needs space. Either the conversations go in circles, or you’re avoiding the real talk.

But beneath the challenges, you know things can be different. You want to feel closeness. To approach one another with care, mutual support, and understanding so you can return to a relationship that feels safe, connected, and fulfilling. Couples therapy can help you get there.

Relational Life Therapy

Most of us never got a class in Relationship 101. Relational Life Therapy (RLT), developed by therapist Terry Real, offers a different kind of approach to couples work. Unlike other methods, RLT is compassionately direct, offering clear observations and feedback to help couples make meaningful changes.

RLT acknowledges how gender roles and cultural conditioning shape the way we relate—and helps partners lean to have a more authentic, intimate relationship.

By recognizing recurring patterns and understanding where the behavior comes from, you can start to find your way back to one another and form more conscious ways to reconnect.

Leave behind…

  • Blame, shame, and criticism

  • Withdrawing or escalating

  • Disagreements around division of labor

  • Lack of intimacy

  • Avoidance

Move towards…

  • Listening more and taking responsibility for your own part

  • Having new guidelines to move through conflict

  • Being on the same team, allowing differences

  • Returning to appreciation

  • Clearly communicating needs

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Couples work is best before a crisis, to help promote growth. If something is feeling off or the partnership is going through a period of transition, it can be helpful to address before things escalate.

  • With commitment from both parties, couples therapy can change patterns to help you feel heard, seen, and understood.

  • This depends on the reason why people enter therapy and is case by case.

    Some couples notice improvement within a few sessions, others need longer term work to go deeper into resolving what is contributing to the challenges.

  • The goal of couples work is not just to keep people together if the relationship is not working. The goal is to find the way to move forward. If you would like some sessions devoted to conscious uncoupling, we can support whatever is best for both people.

  • Insurance companies typically to not see couples therapy as a “medical necessity”.

    Please see more about insurance and rates on the FAQ section of the website, or reach out for a consultation to discuss more.

  • Absolutely! Overlapping dynamics and patterns can come up in friendships as well.

    We can have sessions devoted to the goal of resolving what is not being said, and improving the friendship.