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couples therapy

Through a mind body approach, we guide couples through struggles with intimacy, emotional disconnection, communication, gridlocked conflicts, infidelity, mental health and addiction issues, and toward building a more loving and fulfilling relationship.

“Healing isn’t about fixing yourself; it’s about being whole in connection with others who see and accept you.”

-Anonymous

SERVICES

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Are you and your partner stuck in cycles of conflict or disconnection that you can’t seem to break? Do conversations escalate into arguments or silence? Are trust, emotional intimacy, or shared values lacking in your relationship? 

Unresolved issues in a relationship often build up to feelings of frustration, loneliness, resentment, and hopelessness about the future, affecting mental and physical health, and spilling over into other areas of life like parenting, work.

I understand this because I’ve been there. I felt the pain of being caught between reactivity and emotional shutdown, the weight of unresolved conflicts, and the heartbreak of doubting whether my relationship could survive.

In couples therapy, my husband and I learned how to rebuild trust, communicate more effectively, and reconnect emotionally—and it changed everything. It also taught me that healing the connection between partners and nurturing relationship health play a crucial role in personal healing. For these reasons I’m so passionate and committed to helping others navigate similar challenges. 

At the Centre for Mind Body Psychotherapy, I create a safe and compassionate space where you and your partner can work through your unique challenges. Through evidence-based approaches like Gottman Method, I facilitate a structured process that helps you access emotional support, gain valuable insights, and develop the tools you need to build a more loving, secure, and healthy relationship. 

Couples leave therapy feeling more understood and connected, with a renewed sense of hope for the future. While the process takes time, it’s a meaningful step toward healing and creating the relationship you both deserve.  

  • Here at the Centre for Mind Body Psychotherapy we use an approach to couples therapy called The Gottman Method. The Gottman Method for Couple Therapy is an evidence-based approach to couples counseling developed by Drs. John and Julie Gottman. Based on over four decades of research on couples and relationships, the method aims to help couples improve communication, deepen emotional intimacy, navigate conflicts constructively, while fostering shared goals an values to create a resilient and meaningful connection. The Gottman method is designed to support couples across all economic, racial, sexual orientation and cultural sectors.

    Can You Tell Me More About Gottman Method Couples Therapy? 

    Key principles and techniques of the Gottman Method include:

    1. The Sound Relationship House Theory: This theory outlines the essential elements of a strong and stable relationship. It includes concepts such as building love maps (knowing each other deeply), sharing fondness and admiration, turning towards each other for support, managing conflict constructively, and creating shared meaning in the relationship.

    2. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse: These are negative communication patterns that can predict the end of a relationship if left unchecked. They include criticism, contempt, defensiveness, and stonewalling. The Gottman Method helps couples identify and address these destructive communication patterns.

    3. Emotional Bids and Responding: The method emphasizes the importance of emotional bids, which are attempts for emotional connection and attention. Couples are encouraged to recognize and respond positively to each other's bids to strengthen emotional intimacy.

    4. The Love Map Exercise: This involves deepening the couple's understanding of each other by asking open-ended questions and sharing thoughts, feelings, and experiences.

    5. The Fondness and Admiration System: Couples are encouraged to express fondness and appreciation for each other regularly, fostering a sense of admiration and respect in the relationship.

    6. Rituals of Connection: The method encourages couples to establish and maintain meaningful rituals or routines that foster connection and bonding.

    7. The Dreams within Conflict Technique: During conflicts, the Gottman Method helps couples uncover their underlying dreams, values, and aspirations to find common ground and understanding.

    8. Aftermath of a Fight and Repair Attempts: Couples are guided on how to repair and de-escalate conflicts after they occur to prevent long-term damage to the relationship.

    To learn more about the Gottman Method, click this link:  https://www.gottman.com/about/the-gottman-method/

  • Other Therapies

    In addition to the Gottman Method, we use elements from Attachment Therapy, Attachment Therapy, and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and Internal Family Systems (IFS). This combination helps couples not only understand the roots of their attachment styles and communication patterns but also develop greater self-compassion for themselves and each other

    An Attachment Lens allows us to explore how your childhood and past experiences have shaped the way you connect and respond in relationships today, while DBT equips you with tools to manage emotions, stay grounded, and respond with care instead of reactivity during difficult moments. 

    IFS helps you and your partner understand the protective parts (e.g., shutting down, defensiveness, blaming) that surface during difficult moments and the vulnerable inner wounds and emotions behind them, allowing for more understanding and compassionate communication.

Approaches Used in Couples Therapy

Issues Frequently Addressed

  • Emotional Intimacy
    • Infidelity
    • Communication problems

    • Unresolved conflict or wounds
    • Blended Family Dynamics or Parenting Issues

    • Conflict around extended familY

    • Trauma or Substance Use Issues • Anxiety and Depression

    • Financial Concerns

    • Intimacy Problems

couple sitting on a couch speaking with their therapist

Couples Therapy Process

The process starts with a conjoint interview session where you and your partner discuss your challenges, relationship history, and goals. This is followed by individual interview sessions where we get the chance to dive deeper into identifying the key issues. There is also an optional online questionnaire (The Gottman Relationship Check-Up), which provides an in-depth assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of your relationship. 

From there, therapy goals and a tailored treatment plan are developed. You will learn a new framework to help you understand your relationship, its strengths and challenges, and learn tools to help you resolve your relationship concerns. Treatment is typically 8 to 20 sessions. 

It's important to remember that couples therapy is a collaborative process, and both partners need to be committed to making positive changes.

  • 10-Minute Consultation

    An initial consultation appointment can help clarify your areas of concern and suggest a treatment focus.

  • Assessment & Goal Setting

    Together, we’ll determine what areas we should focus on during our time together.

  • Virtual Therapy

    All sessions are conducted virtually to provide accessible and convenient care. 

Where to start?

Couples Therapy faq

  • Our clients notice this therapy is different. From the assessment process, treatment, and the resources they are provided. This is not just talk therapy. Our seamless step-by-step process helps clients target the issues that need to be worked on, are given take-home resources, and engage in goal-oriented sessions so clients learn new skills in a short timeframe. 

  • Here are some ways in which couples therapy can be beneficial:

    1. Improved Communication: Couples therapy focuses on enhancing communication skills between partners. Therapists teach active listening, assertiveness, and empathy skills, allowing couples to express their thoughts and feelings more effectively and understand each other better.

    2. Conflict Resolution: Therapists help couples identify and address the root causes of conflicts in their relationship. Couples learn healthier ways to manage disagreements and differences and find solutions that are mutually satisfying.

    3. Enhanced Intimacy and Emotional Connection: Couples therapy can address issues related to emotional and physical intimacy. Couples learn how to reconnect, express affection, and strengthen their emotional bond.

    4. Increased Understanding and Empathy: Couples therapy fosters a deeper understanding of each other's perspectives, feelings, and needs. This leads to increased empathy and compassion for one another.

    5. Identifying and Changing Negative Patterns: Couples often fall into negative patterns of interaction, such as criticism, defensiveness, or withdrawal. Therapy helps couples recognize these patterns and develop new, positive ways of relating to each other.

    6. Rebuilding Trust: Couples therapy provides a safe space to address past hurts and breaks in trust. Therapists guide partners through a process of healing and rebuilding trust in the relationship.

    7. Navigating Life Transitions: Significant life changes, such as becoming parents, aging parents or dealing with career stress, can strain a relationship. Couples therapy can help partners navigate these transitions and support each other effectively.

    8. Promoting Emotional Safety: In a supportive therapeutic environment, couples can express their feelings and vulnerabilities without fear of judgment or criticism, fostering emotional safety and openness.

    9. Strengthening the Partnership: Couples therapy focuses on identifying and building upon the strengths of the relationship. Couples learn to appreciate each other's positive qualities and find ways to grow together.

    10. Proactive Approach to Relationship Maintenance: Couples may engage in therapy as a proactive measure to strengthen their relationship and prevent potential issues from escalating.

  • Fees are $220 per 50-minute session.

  • You may cancel your appointment without being charged up to 48 hours in advance. Cancellations with less than 48 hours notice will be billed the full fee.

  • Couples therapy session $220 for 50 minutes. Sessions are offered a secure telemedicine on-line platform.

  • Gottman Method generally involves between six and twelve sessions, although can vary depending on the specific challenges of the couple.

    1. There is domestic violence in the relationship.
      For cases involving domestic violence, couples therapy is not recommended as a solution. Individuals experiencing abuse should seek assistance to safely exit the relationship. Couples who have encountered occasional lapses in judgment involving minor physical actions like pushing, slapping, or shoving may find couples therapy appropriate.

    2. One partner has reached the conclusion that the relationship is over.
      If you are already certain about ending the relationship and are participating in therapy solely to appease the other person prior to the breakup, the chances of therapy yielding success are minimal.

    3. There is a secret withheld in your relationship.
      From concealed romances to undisclosed drug use, hidden truths profoundly affect the bedrock of relationships and couples therapy. If a secret has been divulged, therapy can play a valuable role in addressing the aftermath of the betrayal caused by the secret, fostering healing, and restoring trust.

    4. You ask the therapist to take sides.
      A therapist is not a referee. If you are looking for someone to help you blame your partner this is not for you. Success depends on each person’s ability to take guidance from the therapist and engage in therapeutic interventions. A therapist doesn't function as a judge. If your intention is to find someone who will assign blame, couples therapy might not be your goal. The effectiveness of the process depends on each person's ability to embrace the therapist's guidance and actively participate in therapeutic strategies.

    5. Lack of action outside of session.
      As they say, “the more you put in the more you get out”. Therapy is not a quick fix. It requires dedication, practice, and ongoing commitment to apply changes outside the therapy sessions.

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