Clifton Counselling

Couples Counselling

I am passionate about empowering couples and this is embedded in my approach. I understand there are many and varied reasons which lead to people seeking help and I am experienced in working with couples on a range of issues. These include communication, bereavement, fertility, trust, intimacy, family issues, infidelity, work, financial worries, separation and divorce.

 

My Level 2 couples training with Debbie Winterbourne had a focus on the Developmental Model of Couples Counselling (pioneered by Drs Ellyn Bader and Peter Pearson).

 

I work with the following concepts:

  • Goal setting
  • The Crucible Model by Dr David Schnarch
  • Differentiation Theory and its relationship to Attachment Theory
  • Work with affairs and betrayals
  • Looking at the different types of lies within relationship
  • Concepts from neuroscience
  • The five stages of development in adult relationships, and the goals/tasks of each stage
  • Couples Questionnaire
  • The Paper Exercise to ascertain and diagnose major problems in the ability to handle conflict, negotiation and communication
  • Hostility and avoidance
  • Facilitating the Initiator-Inquirer Dialogue
  • Repairing ruptures in relationships
  • Strategies for making decisions

Some of the work involves learning to recognise how early childhood relationship experiences affect how we communicate, behave, and respond to others in adult relationships. It can help clients work out misunderstandings, reduce conflict, and rediscover ways to bond, communicate, and find common ground. It can benefit couples who are trying to improve their relationships and become closer to their partners, and individuals in need of communication skills to better their relationships in general.

 

I work with a variety of approaches tailored to individuals and couples in maintenance and in times of crisis. I can help you overcome problems which you may have experienced for a long time which you are struggling to fix. We will find a way to work together curiously and collaboratively to discover the cause of difficulties and how dynamics in your way of relating may be repeating themselves unhelpfully.

 

I believe in holding a safe, respectful and supportive space in which we can together explore what is important for you both and for your relationship. I focus on your goals and providing strategies to help build more effective communication and express your needs and feelings in healthy ways and to listen with empathy and understanding.

 

What next?

Our initial meeting will be an opportunity for us to understand how we will work together in our weekly sessions. Please note that it may be necessary alongside the course of the couples therapy to have individual 1:1 sessions. This can be discussed and agreed together with your individual needs. Please be advised that homework is set as part of this therapy which I find greatly aids the therapeutic process and promotes successful outcomes.