Conflict in a relationship is completely natural
Even the healthiest of couples experience some degree of conflict in their lives. The secret is addressing those issues head-on and not letting your less-loving interactions define you.
The bond and love found in an intimate relationship are profound. When a couple is in sync, they can move through good and bad times and become stronger as a result. However, there can be times when life’s challenges can strain even the best relationships. If a relationship’s stress, resentment, and conflict go unresolved, it can tear couples apart, and the divides may never heal.
If you and your partner are having difficulty weathering the storms in your relationship, San Francisco couples therapy can be very beneficial in helping both of you address and overcome those obstacles. By seeking out couples counseling in San Francisco, you can gain insight into your relationship dynamics, stop conflicts before they start and repair any lingering emotional wounds or traumas.
How Can Couples Therapy Help?
Simply defined, couples therapy is a form of psychotherapy that focuses on helping couples work through challenges and creates healthy coping and communication strategies to reduce the negative impact of those challenges. Therapists who conduct couples therapy in San Francisco have specialized training and years of proven experience understanding intimate relationships’ unique dynamics. Couples therapy focuses on the following important elements:
- Focus on a couple’s specific problem or issue
- Focus on treating and repairing the relationship as a whole not the individuals
- Clearly outlining and establishing treatment objectives
- Using interventions that are solution-focused and based on the change
There are a variety of issues that marriage counseling in San Francisco can address. These issues may include substance abuse, infidelity, parenting conflicts, depression or other mental illness, anger management, and communication issues, among others.
What to Expect in Couples Therapy
When you first start marriage counseling in San Francisco, the therapist will conduct an initial screening and interview. What will be discussed in this intake process is the nature of your relationship and a deeper dive into your values, cultural background, and family background. From this interview, you and the therapist will target the specific issue you need to work through in therapy. Once discovered, the therapist will establish specific treatment goals and the structure for treatment sessions.
There are many different types of couples therapy modalities that can be personalized to meet each couple’s unique needs and issues. One such therapy is called emotionally focused therapy (EFT). This short-term form of psychotherapy was developed in the 1980s and helps couples discover and de-escalate the interaction patterns that lead to conflict. In EFT, couples also learn how to communicate and listen to each other with compassion and acceptance. Finally, the therapist works with the couple to learn healthy communication skills that strengthen their bond.
In addition to EFT, couples therapists also may use modalities such as psychotherapy, narrative therapy, solution-focused therapy, and Northern California cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). Most therapists are trained in several of these modalities and will work with each couple to determine which best fits their situation. If needed, therapists can employ more than one therapy if needs change in the therapy process.
During therapy, our counselor will help you gain insight into the dynamics that create conflict and help you and your partner understand your roles in creating that dysfunction. The insight gained will direct you in changing those dysfunctional behaviors and creating healthy coping and communication skills that will help mend and heal your relationship.
How Couples Counseling Works
First, your therapist will assess your relationship and work with you to establish meaningful goals. Based on what is learned in those initial sessions, your therapist will create a treatment plan for getting your relationship to a healthier place.
Your couples therapist will work with you on creating that plan, so you can be clear on what you would like to achieve and how to get there.
The Best Couples Counseling in San Francisco
We understand that relationships can be very complex, and it requires special training to “get in the mix” with a couple.
Well Clinic has selected a highly talented team of licensed couples therapists to provide support for incoming couples. Each clinician has been through rigorous and specialized training in couples counseling before joining the team.
The Sex And Anger Connection
Most couples enter couples counseling in San Francisco with the assumption that they need to eliminate conflict from their relationship. The belief is that fighting of any kind is somehow a bellwether of incompatibility.
Commonly, couples who avoid conflict tell their couples therapist, “We don’t fight at all, so I don’t understand why this isn’t working.”
Again, there is a common misconception that the presence of conflict is somehow the indicator of a relationship heading south. This idea could not be further from the truth.
Why Aren’t We Having Sex?
As a couple, it’s completely normal for your sex life to experience highs and lows. Yet, few couples come into therapy and say, “we’re not having sex!”
When sex does finally come up, it takes a while to discover the root cause and address it … “we’ve drifted apart” … “we’re fighting too much” … “I’m just not in the mood” … etc.
One of the primary goals of couples therapy at Well Clinic is to help you see below the surface … to understand what causes these disturbances in the everyday reality of your relationship.
READ MORE ▹How to Keep Intimacy Alive
When a relationship is young, it is easy to be excited. A long-term partnership can be just as fantastic.
As time goes on, newness gives way to deeper connection, trust and intimacy. That said, it is too easy to get into a rhythm with a partner that may be efficient but lacks excitement.
That’s why it’s incredibly important to shake up this tendency. Couples who play together stay together, and couples counseling in San Francisco can help.
Top-Rated Couples Counseling in San Francisco
Even the healthiest of couples experience some degree of conflict in their lives. The secret is addressing those issues head-on and not letting your less-loving interactions define you. By seeking out couples counseling in San Francisco, you can gain insight into your relationship dynamics, stop conflicts before they start, and repair any lingering emotional wounds or traumas.
We know that choosing the right person can be a tough and overwhelming task. That’s why we strive to make it as easy as possible to find top-rated couples counseling in San Francisco.
As one of the pre-eminent couples therapy practices in the Bay Area, Well Clinic has selected a highly talented team of licensed couples therapists to provide support for incoming couples. Each clinician has been through rigorous and specialized training in couples counseling before joining the team.
Whatever you’re going through, Well Clinic has a compassionate couples therapist waiting to help. Simply use the filters below to find a perfect match, then reach out and make contact.
Help is just a click away.
Contact Well Clinic today to learn more about how our San Francisco mental health clinic can help you and your partner today.
