Couple Therapy

I work with couples in both pre-marital counseling and marriage counseling. I also see pre-relationship individuals who want to engage their personal healing to prepare for a healthy, long-term relationship.

Couple Counseling

Difficulty in relationship is normal, not wrong. It stems from how we’re wired as human beings. The key to a satisfying and loving long term relationship is how well we understand how to be in relationship given the realities of our human “wiring”. Most of us didn’t get this understanding growing up.

My approach to couples therapy is informed by my training with Stan Tatkin and his therapeutic approach, a Psychobiological Approach to Couple Therapy (“PACT”). I am a Level 2 trained PACT therapist. PACT is a powerful couples therapy approach that combines attachment theory, developmental neuroscience and nervous system regulation. PACT therapy skillfully guides couples toward creating a “secure functioning” relationship. In a secure functioning relationship conflict is met in attuned and empathic ways that preserves and even grows the safety and loving connection in the relationship. In the process of moving toward secure functioning, partners not only surface and work through any necessary healing that impedes their connection and communication, each also learns and practices the key skills for working with conflict so together they can deepen and grow a loving and mutually satisfying connection.

Pre-Marital Counseling

In pre-marital counseling work, we focus on uncovering and addressing the key areas that may bring challenges to a couple relationship. Areas that are explored include: coming to more deeply know oneself and one’s partner - especially from an early attachment lens, fostering a deeper mutual connection, addressing existing concerns either partner has about the relationship, making explicit each partner’s expectations and hopes, and learning and practicing the core skills and relationship fundamentals that form the foundation for a successful relationship.