For some couples, resolving issues in their relationship can be as simple as working with a professional. Whether you’re facing financial challenges, communication difficulties, infidelity, or recurring arguments, couples counseling may be beneficial.
While couples therapy can help with many different problems, the most common benefits are strengthening relationships and enhancing communication.
Increased Satisfaction
Couples therapy is most beneficial when a couple seeks it out before they reach a breaking point or during a period of increased stress. Working through problems and learning new skills is much easier when you and your partner are happy and open to the process.
During couples therapy Lafayette LA, your therapist will help you and your partner gain insight into the dysfunctional interactions that cause relationship distress and conflict. It says this insight may lead to improved communication and understanding of one another.
Your therapist can also guide you and your partner away from negative interaction patterns like criticism, defensiveness, speech interruption, and contempt, often the root of many marital conflicts. This can lead to a deeper emotional connection and greater satisfaction in your marriage.
Better Communication
Whether they struggle to talk about money, parenting, or infidelity, couples therapists provide a space where partners can hear their feelings without judgment. This can help them understand each other better and learn how to communicate more constructively.
Having a therapist present also means they can guide if the discussion gets out of hand or if one partner feels they are not being heard. Couples can also work on emotional intimacy during sessions, leading to a more fulfilling relationship.
Although arguing over major roadblocks is common, many couples struggle with more minor issues that can feel insurmountable. From arguing over laundry to having difficulty conceiving children or even working together in the same business, minor problems can cause significant stress and create unhappiness within a partnership.
Better Decision-Making Skills
People seek therapy for a wide range of reasons. For some couples, it’s a struggle with finances or health issues. For others, it’s a lack of intimacy or ongoing arguments. For many, it’s a combination of problems like a need to communicate better and the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on their lifestyle.
During treatment, couples gain insight into the dynamics causing relationship distress and improve communication skills. They also learn to identify and change negative behaviors, such as criticism, defensiveness, stonewalling, and contempt.
This helps them resolve conflict, increase connectedness, and build a more harmonious dynamic. Couples often see progress in their relationship within 8-12 sessions. This isn’t to say it’s easy or that teams don’t have more work to do, but they have the tools to do it.
Increased Empathy
A significant benefit of couples therapy is helping you and your partner empathize with each other. This is important because it allows you to avoid getting tripped up in arguments over facts and instead focus on the feelings behind the issues.
In addition, empathy can help you find a compromise and work through problems from different perspectives. It also lets you recognize when your partner struggles emotionally and respond appropriately.
Couples therapy can help you address many problems, including infidelity, rebalancing roles and responsibilities, navigating significant transitions and decisions, improving sex, or dealing with abuse. If you and your partner struggle with abuse, you should seek specialized domestic violence counseling. Your therapist can also refer you to other organizations that can offer support.
Reduced Conflicts
While therapists understand that no couple has a marriage free of hurt or perfect communication, they can help you create a more harmonious dynamic. Many couples find that they can start to see movement in their relationships within 8-12 sessions.
Roadblocks in a relationship can range from significant decisions like having children to everyday events like arguing over laundry or the dishes. During therapy, a therapist can help you and your partner discover the underlying causes of these arguments and learn to communicate more effectively in future disagreements.
They also provide a safe space for you and your partner to open up and express your emotions without fear of being judged or taken advantage of. And if discussions become too heated, they can offer healthy intervention techniques to de-escalate arguments and avoid blame.