What is couples counselling?
Couples counselling is a type of therapy for two intimate partners where both partners would attend sessions together. If you are thinking of attending alone, then please indicate this on the contact form.
People often seek couples therapy when an unexpected crisis happens such as infidelity, financial issues, a family trauma, a major life change or a desire to relate better to one another or work out the future. Often there’s a wish where at least one person wants to be understood better, wants to understand the other person better, feels dissatisfied with what’s happening in the relationship or what they are not getting in the relationship (needs not being met) or they want to resolve an issue that has been causing arguements and work on strengthening the relationship. It can also help at crisis point to resolve whether to stay together or separate. The key is the motivation and willingness of both people to work on the relationship together and say “I’m in” for the period both parties are in therapy.
How long does couples counselling take to work?
Some couples only need a couple of sessions, others may require 6 or more. We will monitor progress session by session and together we will decide how many sessions you might need. The aim is to make me redundant as soon as possible, by giving you the tools to communicate and understand each person in the relationship independently without me present.
What happens in a couples counselling session?
There will be three of us attending (online or a three-way telephone call), you, your partner and me (your counsellor). My role is to help you explore the concerns each of you individually are having in the relationship and help you both identify what you both want and need individually and from the relationship, and want the outcome to be. Together we might explore:
- what works in your relationship
- what you appreciate each other, or what you did appreciate about each other at the start
- having equal space to express your thoughts and feelings
- how your individual pasts and past together might be impacting the present
- identifying problems and behaviours that are impacting the relationship
- contextual factors (family, faith, lifestyle, culture, etc.)
- your individual needs and wants for the relationship
- what you’d like to commit to, to meet each others needs, not how you want your partner to change
- learning new effective ways to communicate and navigate conflict
- caring for yourself and each other
What can couples counselling help with?
- Affairs and betrayal
- Poor communication
- Lack of trust
- Jealousy
- Differing values and goals
- Differing parenting styles
- Gender role conflict
- Wider family conflicts
- Life changes such as empty nest, bereavement, illness
- Sexual issues
- Emotional intimacy issues
- Financial issues
- Work-related difficulties
- Religion or politics
How much does couples counselling cost?
Complimentary 15-min exploratory video call session to find out more about your needs and how I can help you.
For individual relationship counselling via video call online or telephone £55 per 50-min session or if you block book 6+ consecutive weekly sessions £50. For face-to-face sessions, please add £15 per session (Norwich NR3 and NR7 dependant on room availability)
For couples relationship counselling – via video call online or telephone £65 per 50-minute session or if you block book 6+ consecutive weekly sessions £60. For face-to-face sessions, please add £15 per session (Norwich NR3 and NR7 dependant on room availability)
If you’d like to sign up for a FREE 15-min exploratory video call session with Ann-Marie at Reset Mind, simply complete the form below to arrange. Please ensure you leave a telephone number. If you think you will require a longer consultation, that is possible at my hourly rate.