Talk Therapy with Suzanne Perry

Pre-Marital therapy has been found to help married couples seek help sooner during times of strife, to help maintain and improve their relationship.  Marriage is a big decision for most of us, so why not go into it having had a thorough conversation about the future and with coping skills to manage future communications and disagreements?  Below are a few questions you might ask yourself and/or your future spouse: Why are you getting married?  How do you envision your marriage to be?  What is important to you in a marriage? What is important to you in a partner?  Does your partner embody these qualities? Do you trust your partner? How were conflicts resolved in your family of origin?  Have you encountered any issues with conflicts thus far in your relationship and how have you handled them?  How do you plan to resolve conflicts in your marriage? What do you need from your partner in order to feel loved? How involved do you envision your extended f...

Some couples might feel that, if they love each other enough, they should be able to work through anything, without professional help.  While love is a key ingredient in a good relationship, it can be seriously challenged by feelings of not being heard or supported, not having a sense of connectedness, not being able to work through challenges/disagreements effectively, and infidelity and betrayal.  This can create frustration and resentment between partners and lead to criticism, contempt, defensiveness, and stonewalling; the Four Horsemen of the apocalypse of the relationship, according to John Gottman, a noted researcher and theorist of relationships.  If you experience these regularly,  they have probably caused a rift in your relationship.  A couples therapist will help partners recognize these aspects in their relationship and give the couple tools to resolve them. Below is a list of some of the things you might experience in couples therapy, with a therap...