Great Couples Counseling in Four Corners, MD. Therapy to heal relationships.

Sometimes a couple reaches a place where they need to work on resolving different conflict in their relationship. There may be communication issues and the ability to make thoughtful decisions about the relationship is lost. I use the Gottman approach to help you identify where the major issues are and interventions to help improve communication. I will be your neutral mediator, I do not take sides. My focus will be on the relationship and both of you will get time to give your story. The couple will have an opportunity to talk through the issues and at times figure out what the issues are.

Given the many challenges that can lead to divorce (money problems, adultery, differences in raising children, etc.) the wisest thing couples can do is to seek Christian counseling before they say "I do." No matter how solid a couple’s relationship may be, problems and differences will inescapably arise. Therefore, pre-marital counseling really operates as the best security system a couple could ever purchase. Our Christian counselors can be beneficial by familiarizing couples with targeted areas of conflict that often lead to divorce. These areas are: • Communication • In-Laws • Money/finances • Sexuality • Spiritual Intimacy • Roles (delegation of responsibilities)

I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) with years of training and experience helping couples to navigate the most painful and difficult chapter in their relationships. I will guide you with compassion, empathy, and a skill set that is born in working with couples across the country in their healing journeys. I have been featured in Forbes, the Knot, and other leading media outlets discussing relationships, intimacy, and communication. I’d love to connect with you and your partner about the unique circumstances that you are facing and how I might be able to help.

Committed and loving connections with a partner are probably the most challenging and potentially healing of all relationships in life. Deep fears of closeness tend to get in the way of realizing such potential, often without being consciously recognized as fears. I help partners in couples to find ways of being gentle and honest with each other and with themselves as they confront and overcome their fears.

Like all psychotherapy, couples therapy is a process, but one in which I work to help both members of a partnership to feel heard while also working for measurable change that couples can notice and know when they are making progress. I use attachment models to inform my work with couples–helping couples to develop a safer, more fulfilling and secure partnership. I focus on both present circumstances while also working to understand how problems develop and providing ways to prevent their reoccurrence. Some of the issues that couples often seek treatment for include the following: Communication Managing Difficult Life Transitions Separation/Divorce Loss/Grief Parenting Saving your Marriage Pre-Marital Counseling Managing Conflict

I provide couples counseling (including marriage counseling) to helping you explore current challenges in your relationship. Are you suffering in your relationship due to consistent conflict, an inability to effectively communicate, lack of intimacy, separation, and simply growing apart? Do you want to find more effective ways to relate to one another and acquire a new sense of intimacy and closeness? Consider couple's counseling to acquire a new awareness of how you can become more effective in your relationship. Give counseling a try; you are deserving of this. Give me a call for a free phone consult to discuss your concerns. 240.292.6127. Make it a good day - - be well. Laurieann

My "Treasure Therapy" helps couples to become aware of themselves and their partner and to appreciate our inherent worth. I use different lenses to analyze how our social identity and sense of worth is shaped by society. This is important for helping couples have a sense of mutuality. John Gottman, an expert in couples therapy, talks about how power differentials can actually impede trust in his book, The Science of Trust. My own PhD research looked at 91 couples and found 12 common factors that influenced the balance of power in heterosexual romantic relationships, summed up with the word "TREASURES" because it summarizes how we approach people as precious treasures.

Your relationship with your partner is the most important relationship in your life. Relationship issues touch every area of our lives. Learning healthy relationship skills is a fundamental building block of a successful life. Through therapy, you will learn how to achieve intimacy, manage conflict, how to give and receive love, and to create the relationship you have always wanted.

Many couples have difficulties communicating. There may have been an affair or there may be a loss of intimacy. I can teach you powerful ways to respectfully resolve issues, communicate and connect in a safe, nurturing way to restore caring and love. You can learn effective ways to bring healing and forgiveness back into your relationship. Since each couple is unique, I use a variety of approaches, such as, the 'Couples Dialogue' developed by Dr. Harville Hendrix, Emotionally Focused Therapy of Dr. Susan Johnson, research of Dr. John Gottman, among others. I also help premarital couples to avoid pitfalls in their relationship and prepare for a successful long-term relationship.

Couples counseling, which includes marriage counseling, tends to be at least 50% of my work as a therapist. I have had post-graduate training in couples counseling and working with couples after an affair. I am also certified to provide pre-marriage counseling using the Prepare Inventory. There is great benefit in seeing a counselor when your relationship is fracturing. In therapy, each person is given the opportunity to express his or her concerns, communication and conflict resolution skills are developed, and new patterns of relating are established.

As marriage and family Therapist, I have specialized training to work with couples. I assist couples in more than communication. I help them build connection, which is the glue of a relationship. All relationships can get into a negative pattern, but without a secure bond the relationship can spin out of control. I assist couples in learning about each partners attachment style and help the couple build healthy problem solving skills through bonding. I offer premarital counseling with an online assessment. If you want to improve a longterm relationship, or heal wounds of infidelity, lets get to the heart of the matter. We all want to know we are important to our partner.

A large part of my work as a therapist is with couples: married, unmarried and pre-marriage. My approach focuses on communication, conflict resolution and understanding the internal dynamics of each individual and how these dynamics affect the couple relationship. I seek to help you understand your own personality and background as well as that of your partner. I am certified to administer an inventory, which can uncover the similarities and differences in your relationship dynamics.