Family Therapy

Many relationships will come under stress at some point, whether as a result of a traumatic experience, such as an affair occurring, or when couples begin to notice that they have gradually started to grow apart after several years together. Couples may seek support due to changes in financial circumstances, physical or mental health issues, grief or loss, extended families, jobs, breakdown in communication or appreciation of each other, the influence of other family members, domestic violence and aging. The relationship could fail or become unbearable and rifts intensify if left.

Couples counselling aims to help improve communication and resolve conflict using a process of therapeutically assisting couples to understand and effectively manage or reconcile troublesome disagreements, conflict or repeated cycles of distress. We understand and recognise in couple therapy that each individual has a unique personality, perspective, set of values and background that may be different to their partner's. Partners in a relationship may have different values and beliefs such as social, religious, group and other collective factors which shape a person’s nature and behaviour. These are all taken into consideration throughout the counselling and therapy process.

What does couples Counselling involve?

During your first meeting, your counsellor will outline what will happen during the couples counselling sessions, talk with you about your expectations and will ask you for a general history of your relationship and about the issues that you are bringing to counselling.

Couples Counselling provides a safe and confidential place for conversations between the counsellor and both partners within the relationship.  The counsellor will always remain non-judgmental and neutral to both of you.   The sessions enable you both to share your thoughts and feelings and to encourage you to be open and honest with each other. They provide a place and space for difficult and conflicted thoughts and emotions to be communicated and heard.

During the discussions, the counsellor will listen carefully and evaluate your difficulties in your relationship from the information you share. They will interrupt wisely, facilitating both a de-escalation of unhelpful conflict and the development of realistic, practical solutions where appropriate.  The counsellor will help you both to reflect upon your relationship’s difficulties and encourage you to identify the potential and direction for change.

The counsellor is there to support you as a couple and to encourage you to take responsibility for your own choices and actions. They may take on a number of different roles including facilitator, mediator and observer. They will also analyse your behaviours and the ways in which you communicate with each other.  They may teach one or both of you new skills or techniques which will help you to communicate and relate more effectively to one another, or help you with behavioural changes. It is important to realise it is not the role of the counsellor to resolve the issues for you, but for you to develop your skills so you can resolve the issues between yourselves. There is no limit to the number of sessions but generally takes place over a number of weeks or months and usually involves both partners in the relationship attending the sessions.

Benefits of couples counselling?

Couples Counselling enables and encourages you to talk about your issues within a safe and comfortable environment, providing you with the opportunity to:

Learn and Understand how to resolve conflict and problem solve in a productive manner

Identify ways to move forward in your relationship and improve your communication levels

Learn how to negotiate and compromise with one another

Discover how to work through unresolved issues

Develop appropriate expression, disclosure and resolution of painful emotions

Gain confidence as a couple in stating your needs clearly and openly within your relationship

The aim and objective of couples counselling is to help you rebuild your relationship and stay together. However, it may be that as a couple you decide to separate, in which case, couples counselling can also help you to do this more amicably.    In most cases, there is a way forward with couples counselling but it requires an effort from both parties and an acceptance that it can often be a long and difficult process.

Booking and Cancellation

Full payment for your first therapy session will be taken in advance, at the time of booking.

As our appointments are in high demand, we require at least 48 hours’ notice to cancel your appointment.

Where 48 hours or more notice has been given, your session fee will be refunded less a cancellation fee of £10.00.

Where less than 48 hours’ notice is given, the session will be charged in full and there will be no refund