Couples Therapy
Have you been thinking that it might be time to try Couples Therapy?
When you feel connected with your partner life feels manageable and even exciting.
You used to love doing things together. Traveling, going out, hiking, going to the beach. It didn’t matter. It was fun and you felt joy just being together.
You have both worked so hard to be successful in life, but lately you haven’t been feeling very successful with each other.
You want your partner to understand that you still care. You still love him/her! When you try to communicate that love, it hasn’t been working.
You don’t know how to get back to feeling joy again. You need something that will give you the opportunity to see if that is possible with your husband/wife again.
Couples Therapy is an experience that has the potential to change the direction of your life. I want to help give you the tools to feel seen and understood by your partner.
The Couples Therapy Experience
In the time I have worked with couples I have found that the shorter, “typical,” therapy sessions are not quite as helpful as longer, more intensive sessions, particularly in the first several weeks.
The minimum I require for couples is 100 minute sessions. Because these sessions tend to be more intense, we will usually only have to meet once every 2 weeks for the first few sessions and then space them out even more after that.
Couples Intensive
This couples intensive is basically the first 5 sessions of therapy packed into one block of time. I have found that this is the best way to begin couples therapy and progress is amplified from starting off in this way. It is also helpful so that you don’t have to take time out of your busy schedules during the work week.
Individual Therapy
Whether therapy is something you have tried before or something you have been thinking about trying for the first time, you know you want to improve certain parts of yourself and your life.
You have been successful in certain aspects of your life, but just feel like you want to feel better or more satisfied with other parts. It might be stress at work, your relationships, or feeling unmotivated and unsatisfied, but you know you could be more fulfilled and happy.
You might be searching for support through something that is going on now or something that happened in the past. I can help you explore how your emotions affect you in ways that have been difficult for you to identify.
I want to help you live a more engaged life. A life you feel excited about.
Therapy is an investment in yourself. You have the potential to make a lot of progress.
The Process of Therapy
If you are interested in making the investment in yourself to begin therapy you might be wondering what kind of commitment this would be for you.
I recommend a 10 minute phone call before setting up the first session so that you can have all of your questions answered and get a feel for how I am as a therapist. I am also available by email to answer any questions.
If we decide to set up the first therapy appointment I will send you some paperwork to fill out and bring to the first session.
The first intake appointment will be 50 minutes and we can begin to make a plan going forward from there.
It is usually the most helpful to plan to meet every week or even two times per week starting off. Once we have had 6-8 sessions we can reevaluate where you’re at and what you feel is helpful based on the progress that you’ve made.
Online Therapy
I offer online counseling by video conference or by phone. This could be for individuals or couples. The following are some examples of situations in which this might be helpful.
A couple in a long distance relationship lives too far apart from each other to make it into the office.
A couple or individual who usually comes into the office is out of town for a long period of time.
A couple or individual has a hard time making it into the office.
People living in other countries can access therapy online.
The normal rates for therapy apply.
If you have any questions or are ready to get started with couples therapy please email Shane Birkel at shane@seacoastspark.com or call 603-852-3654. Shane’s office is in Dover, New Hampshire and is also available for online counseling.
For more information check out Shane’s counseling blog.