It’s natural to be skeptical about the effectiveness of marriage of couples therapy. I know that couples wonder if counseling will work for their specific relationship.
If a therapist is being honest with you, they’ll tell you that it may or may not work. There are many factors that contribute to the outcome of any form of therapy.
Recently, several therapists and I chimed on an article titled: How Marriage Therapists Can Tell if Your Therapy Will Help You or Not.
Below is some of my insight:
How can you tell if the therapy will be helpful to the couple?
When the couple understands that things might be extra bumpy as they begin to change behavioral and communication patterns before it starts to get better, and they’re willing to be patient and persistent.
And, when couples are committed to work as a team instead of seeing each other as the enemy. Couples must also be open-minded, self-reflective, and work on individual issues that impact the relationship.
How can you tell if the therapy will probably not help the couple?
When partners insist on keeping secrets from each other or only one partner is willing and ready to work. The other partner is often “dragged” into therapy or is there to appease the other partner.
Also, when the couple resists putting what they learn into practice, and expect that a session a week will fix all of their problems or when the couple sets unrealistic expectations and quit therapy too early.
If you are considering couples therapy, those are some tips to ensure that you get the most out of your time, money, and energy.
If your relationship is in on the rocks, or you simply feel there is room for improvement, please contact me for a free 20-minute consultation (over the phone or in person) to see if I’m a good fit for you. I’ll gladly answer all your questions.
