Can a Los Angeles Couples Therapist Save My Marriage?
Seeking out a licensed couples therapist in Los Angeles is a way to provide professional guidance and support to address the underlying issues and challenges in your relationship. Here are some questions that often arise when couples seek out couples therapy and marriage counseling, particularly if they have not been in counseling before. Remember, couples therapists are here to help with relationship dynamics—they are especially attuned to addressing a range of needs and circumstances both within the marriage and within each partner in the relationship.
Questions Couples Seeking a Couples Therapist May Have
1. Our marriage is in trouble. What can I expect as far as communication when working with an LA-based couples therapist?
Therapy can elevate your partnership, helping to bring in more communication, connection, compassion, and understanding. Couples therapy is an ideal space for you and your partner to voice your concerns in a safe environment, and to give your communication patterns a chance to shift in healthier ways. Often we get stuck in habits, ruts, or defenses that can be detrimental to true understanding.
In couples therapy, a counselor will ensure that each of you has a chance to voice your truths, to work through your past concerns, and to emerge on the other side with more true connection, and a reaffirmation of the love that brought your marriage together in the beginning. Additionally, a therapist will be able to provide resources, offer questions that you may not have considered as a couple, and encourage connection from new vantage points.
2. When should I seek out a couples therapist?
In Los Angeles—and nationwide—-most couples wait too long to seek out a marriage therapist. Being proactive about the health of your relationship is crucial, and critical to the commitment you each made on your wedding day. Seeking out a couples therapist at the first sign of tension, resentment, or feelings of disconnection is ideal. By talking to a couples therapist this early on, you are each demonstrating a deep love and respect for the integrity of your relationship. Early work keeps detrimental patterns from forming.
A couples therapist will not only invite each of you to share where you are in terms of how you are feeling about the relationship, but they will also encourage you to look at other factors that may be impacting how you and your spouse relate to one another. For instance, has your partnership been affected by financial strain? How have family dynamics contributed to your communication style with your partner? What relationship history—and defenses or expectations—are you both bringing to the table? Are you both on the same page as far as goals for your marriage? Have infidelity and trust been an issue? When did each of you begin to feel a lack of connection?
3. We both have busy, hectic schedules and it is almost impossible for us to meet in person. How can we still work on our relationship?
Online couples therapy is an incredibly helpful solution when meeting in person is not an option. Traffic in LA, commuting in Los Angeles, and trying to get from place to place on a tight schedule is hectic enough—online therapy is an ideal way to continue to prioritize connection without the stress of driving, parking, and waiting rooms. Depending on your preferences, couples therapists may also be able to offer a series of sessions that are part online and part in-person.
Online couples therapy is accommodating, welcoming communication in a virtual space in a way to get the help you need and still be able to work within the parameters of a packed schedule. When spouses are traveling, and not able to be in Los Angeles at the same time, online therapy can help you continue your growth as a couple even when you are not in the same geographic location. Often couples that travel for extended business—or internationally—find that online couples therapy has been particularly helpful in saving their marriage.
4. It seems like we are constantly arguing. Does this mean our marriage is over? Can couples therapy help with conflict management skills?
Couples therapists are extremely adept at helping clients learn how to manage and navigate conflict. In fact, it is a crucial component of couples therapy. Therapists can teach you ways in which to handle disagreements without harming your relationship. Frequent arguments and rising tensions are signs that issues in a marriage need to be addressed—however, they do not mean that the marriage is over. Looking at conflict as an indicator to make an appointment with a therapist is an important perspective. By taking charge of your communication style and habits—especially early on—you bring more peace, empathy, and joy back into your connection.
5. My husband, wife, spouse, or partner and I have been together for many years. As an individual, I have been experiencing a great deal of growth, and I am concerned about the impact of this on my marriage. How can couples therapy help?
While couples therapy is focused on the growth of the couple, it also illuminates each person in the marriage as an individual. As we grow and change, we evolve, but so do our relationships. Therapists in LA are particularly aware of issues where self-growth also impacts a relationship. Couples therapy gives you both the opportunity to speak about yourselves as individuals and as a couple, but it also gives you the chance to reflect on the growth and transformation your marriage has experienced since the beginning.
A therapist is also a guide in helping each person understand where they are in their personal growth, but also within their roles in the marriage. Therapy is a time to look closely at relationship expectations, life changes, unexpected setbacks, and familial patterns to see what areas need to be worked on, and how effective communication and intimacy-building can lead to deeper growth and awareness.
At the first sign of disconnection in a marriage, it is critical to seek out a couples therapist. Even if you aren’t familiar with marriage therapy or couples counseling, scheduling an appointment and beginning the process is the path back to better connection and more joy between you and your partner. In this digital era, when we are so impacted by tight schedules, online couples therapy can be an essential way to bring vitality back into your marriage.
Ready to Meet With a Los Angeles Couples Therapist and Begin Couples Therapy in Los Angeles, CA?
Is your marriage facing challenges that seem insurmountable? Don't let your relationship suffer in silence. An experienced Los Angeles couples therapist at Therapy for Adults is here to guide you on the path to healing, understanding, and strengthening your bond with couples therapy and marriage counseling. Take the first step towards a happier, more fulfilling marriage – reach out and invest in your relationship's future by following these three simple steps:
Book a free consultation with us to see if we'll be a good match
Begin meeting with Steven Reigns, a skilled couples therapist
Work through your challenges as a couple in healthy ways to recover your relationship!
Other Counseling Services I Offer in Los Angeles
At Therapy for Adults, I offer support for anyone experiencing relationship issues, not just couples. So in addition to Couples Therapy and Marriage Counseling, I offer dating coaching and therapy for dating and relationship issues. Additionally, I help highly sensitive people process their uniqueness and appreciate their surroundings and rich internal life. All of these services are available through online therapy throughout California.
