Benefits Of Couples Counselling
Couples counselling can help improve romantic relationships, whether the issues are major or minor. A professional therapist can teach couples how to handle conflicts, strengthen their connection, and communicate effectively. Studies have shown that the huge benefit of couples counselling can continue long after therapy has ended.
Here are a few of the key advantages of couples counselling:
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Improved communication
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Deeper connection and renewed relationship intimacy
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Re-negotiating commitments and making decisions.
Couples typically seek relationship counselling when they recognize that their relationship is facing difficulties. In some cases, the issue is so severe or has been overlooked for so long that the relationship is in a critical state. It is recommended that couples seek help as soon as they realize they are unable to resolve problems on their own.
A couple’s interaction patterns, communication style, and conflict resolution strategies can accurately predict the longevity of a relationship. By addressing and resolving problems early on, the likelihood of the relationship reaching a crisis point or ending is greatly reduced.
No relationship is free of challenges. Issues can arise from the start, develop over time, or be triggered by external stressors. Regardless of the specific problems in a relationship, couples counselling can be beneficial at some point in the relationship.
What is Relationship Counselling?
To grasp the advantages of couples counselling for your relationship, it is crucial to understand what couples counselling is and the reasons why couples seek it. In simple terms, couples counselling is a session with a professional counsellor, psychologist, or therapist who aims to assist a couple in resolving problems that are causing distress or distance in their relationship.
While couples counselling is often associated with romantic relationships, it can also be applied to other types of relationships such as family, friendships, and work relationships.
Sometimes the problems in a relationship are significant, like persistent arguing, unfaithfulness, or mismatched sexual desire.
Other times, couples may seek counselling to make decisions about specific issues such as relocation, marriage, or starting a family. Couples counselling can also be a way for couples to gain a deeper understanding of each other and make more informed decisions about long-term commitment.
Many couples turn to couples counselling as a way to navigate challenging times or transitions in their relationship.
Why Go to Couples Counselling?
Couples counselling or relationship counselling can help couples address and resolve problems in their relationship, improve communication and conflict resolution skills, and strengthen their connection.
This can be beneficial for couples experiencing distress or distance in their relationship, making decisions about specific issues, or navigating difficult times or transitions. Additionally, it can be a way for couples to gain a deeper understanding of each other and make more informed decisions about long-term commitment.
The primary benefits of relationship counselling include:
- Enhancing communication, reducing conflicts, and understanding each other’s needs and reactions.
- Revitalizing intimacy and rebuilding a loving connection in the relationship.
- Discussing and re-evaluating commitments in the family relationships.
Each of these benefits is considered in greater detail below.
Improved Communication Skills and understanding of each other
A relationship comprises of two individuals, each with their own personal history, personality, needs, hopes, and desires. This means that even the most compatible couple may not agree on everything. Sharing one’s life or part of it with another person requires ongoing discussion, compromise, negotiation, and communication.
Effectively communicating with our partner, expressing our own needs and fears and listening attentively to theirs, is a vital aspect of any healthy relationship. Research from Australia indicates that communication issues are the primary cause of relationship breakdown.
A professional couples or relationship counselling expert is trained to identify and address communication patterns and teach couples to communicate more effectively. Sometimes, simply being encouraged to have open and honest discussions during couples counselling can lead to improved communication.
Having strong communication (both speaking and listening) can assist in resolving both major and minor issues, and help maintain a strong relationship, even during challenging times.
Revitalizing emotional connection and rebuilding lost intimacy
The initial phase of a new relationship is typically characterized by intense emotions, high sexual attraction, and positive feelings towards each other. During the “honeymoon period,” the sexual desire and excitement are strong, and couples often want to spend a lot of time together. However, over time these feelings may fade as the novelty and excitement wanes, and couples may find their overall satisfaction in the relationship decreases.
In fact, long-term couples often find that they need to spend less time together to regain their sense of personal identity and individuality. This process is recurring over the course of a relationship, where couples may go through different phases of coming together and pulling apart to become individuals again. This process of separation can take the form of an emotional separation or a practical one, like one partner deciding to go back to school, pursue a new career or interests. It can be thought of as a pulsating cycle, where the intensity of the relationship increases as the couple comes together, but from time to time, they need to take a break to recharge and reconnect with themselves before coming together again.
One of the ways a counsellor or psychologist can assist couples is by not only helping them express concerns and fears, but also by guiding them in negotiating responsibilities that may arise from making new commitments in their relationship. For example, if a couple decides together that one of them will start new studies to pursue a new career path, it may change the family and home maintenance responsibilities for both of them. A professional relationship counselor can help the couple reach clear and practical agreements.
Client Story
As the professional counsellor team that we are, we have helped many couples with implementing positive outcomes that have avoided severe crisis. Dave and Sally came to relationship counselling as they were having a lot of conflict in their relationship. Our counsellor explained to each of them that they were each projecting their family history onto each other. Each party needed to pull back projections, be more accountable, take responsibility, develop more self-awareness and apologise when they realised that they were projecting. This new healthy pattern only took a few sessions to establish and become the norm in their relationship. When they ended couples therapy, they reported that they had established a more satisfying, trusting, and loving relationship.
Where to find relationship counselling help?
If you and your partner are experiencing difficulties in your relationship and are looking for ways to improve your connection and communication, seeking the help of a professional relationship counselling therapist can be beneficial. To find a qualified counsellor and schedule an appointment, you can reach out to organizations such as Energetics Institute marriage counselling in Perth.
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