What Is Couples Therapy?

Couples therapy, also known as relationship or marriage counseling, is a form of psychotherapy specifically designed to address issues and connection within a romantic partnership. It involves a trained therapist who leads couples through a collaborative process aimed at improving communication, resolving conflicts, and enhancing overall relationship satisfaction.

While couples therapy is often seen as a “last resort” intervention for couples at their breaking point, it also serves as a proactive tool for all couples, regardless of their current relationship status or level of conflict.

In couples therapy, the therapist acts as a facilitator, helping partners identify and understand the underlying dynamics of the relationship. They offer valuable insights, evidence-based strategies, and practical tools tailored to the unique needs and goals of each couple. 

Through open and honest dialogue, couples can develop effective communication skills, cultivate empathy, learn healthy conflict resolution, and foster an overall deeper understanding of one another.

What Couples Therapy Can Help With

Couples therapy provides you and your partner with the space to strengthen your connection and address challenges related to a variety of aspects of your relationship such as…

• Communication

• Infidelity and trust

• Finances

• Roles in the relationship

• Children

• Intimacy

• Conflict resolution

• Belief and values

Benefits Of Couples Therapy

1) Identify and Work Through Relationship Issues

Couples therapy provides a structured and safe space to identify and address underlying issues within the relationship. It helps partners gain insights into their patterns, dynamics, and individual contributions to the problems, creating room for growth and positive change.

2)  Improved Communication

Healthy communication is KEY to healthy relationships because it allows couples to build trust, understanding, and mutual respect for another. You can’t read your partner's mind and they can’t read yours, so it’s crucial that you develop habits that create space for feelings, emotions, and thoughts to be communicated openly and effectively. 

3) Increased Understanding 

Through therapy, couples can gain a deeper understanding of oneself and one’s partner. By exploring individual and shared values, needs, desires, and emotions, couples can gain a new perspective on their relationship dynamics and learn how to better support and care for each other moving forward.

4) Greater Intimacy & Connection

Engaging in couples therapy can be a great way to enhance the emotional and physical intimacy within the relationship. By creating a safe and supportive environment, therapy encourages partners to explore their vulnerabilities, reconnect on a deeper level, and rebuild trust. This renewed sense of intimacy fosters a stronger bond and a deeper connection.

5) Enhanced Conflict-Resolution Skills

Conflicts are an inevitable part of any relationship, but how they are handled can make all the difference. Couples therapy provides couples with effective conflict resolution strategies, teaching them to navigate disagreements with respect, empathy, and collaboration. These skills lay the foundation for healthier and more constructive conflict management.

Couples Therapy in Missouri and Kansas

Ready to build a deeper connection with your partner and start working through conflict in a healthy way?  Get started with couples therapy today by calling 913.735.9226 or emailing me at shannon@newnarrativetherapy.org.