Debbie People often say that love is a verb. If that adage is true, what are you actively doing to ensure that you maintain a strong relationship with your spouse?
For many couples, marriage counseling is an active step toward strengthening a relationship. Whether you’re struggling with sex, communication, or another issue, a qualified marriage counselor can help make difficult conversations easier. Often, simply showing up for sessions is a way to prove your commitment to making things work.
Starting relationship counseling can be scary, especially if you’ve never attended individual therapy before. Do you know what to expect from your average relationship therapy session? Keep reading to learn more about what happens when you commit to marriage therapy.
Your First Session
Your first session with a new counselor can feel more like a trial session. You’ll want to make sure the marriage counselor is the right fit for your needs, and that you feel comfortable working with them. At the same time, your new counselor will want to get to know you as a couple.
Usually, you’ll begin by explaining the history of your relationship, warts and all. You’ll have the time and space to focus on your particular struggles and articulate your specific needs. You can check out this page for more information about this.
Often, your therapist will help you to set some specific, actionable goals – not just for therapy, but for your relationship. This can help determine how long you will attend therapy together.
Does Couples Counseling Work?
Therapy sessions provide couples with the time and the space to be vulnerable. According to research into romantic love, vulnerability is one of the most significant factors when it comes to falling in love. If you’ve been struggling with honesty and open communication, therapy is a way to “schedule” vulnerability into your life.
Counselors are also very good at helping both parties feel heard and understood during conflict. Their professional training can help you get to the root of a relationship problem, even if you’ve been unable to clearly articulate it in the past. For example, it might be that things have been rocky because the man is struggling with a health problem that is affecting his whole outlook on life, therefore the relationship. They can provide you with actionable “therapy homework” that can lead to growth. You could also supplement this yourselves with your own actions, such as looking up somewhere like this ED Clinic North Scottsdale that could potentially help with the health problem, if this is what it is.
Like all therapy, you will often get back exactly what you put into the process. If you attend sessions with an open mind and with a willingness to do the work, you will likely reap the benefits. Of course, counseling works the best of all if both parties enter the process with the desire to grow.
Ultimately, with the help of the right practitioner, you can mend rifts in even the most challenging circumstances. The first step is being willing to engage with honesty.
Marriage Counseling Is Love in Action
Sustaining a relationship is an active process. Attending marriage counseling is one way to ensure that you are embracing agency.
A trained counselor knows how to facilitate discussions that can shed light on even the most sensitive issues. Making the time to talk through conflicts is an important and effective way to make your most important relationship stronger and lead a more satisfying life.
Your family and relationships are important, and they’re worth the effort. Check out the rest of the blog for more active ways to put your family first.
