Three Common Problems Marriage Counseling Can Help With
You may have been thinking about marriage counseling for a while but have been hesitant to make the call and schedule an appointment. It’s common to be unsure and hesitant. Many questions and fears can arise as a result of the unknown.
- What will it be like?
- How do I pick a therapist?
- Will it really help my marriage?
- Can it really help our communication?
Deciding to see a therapist, whether individually or as a couple, is a very personal decision. One that only you can make.
Should you decide to begin marriage counseling with your spouse, I’ve listed three common problems marriage counseling can help with. While these are in no particular order, these are common relationship issues that impact couples.
1. Communication Issues: Communication is a common problem I see with many couples seeking marriage counseling. Communication is a broad term that can encompass a lot of different things for couples and can range from constantly arguing with one another to not talking with each other.
Marriage counseling can help couples get to the heart of what is triggering them and can help couples develop new ways of communication that can begin to help partners feel heard and understood. It can help couples learn more about feelings they might be feeling and learn how to respond in a way that honors what they are feeling but does not blame or criticize their partner.
2. Infidelity: There are different forms of infidelity such as physical affairs, emotional affairs, affairs that occur on-line to name a few. When infidelity occurs in a relationship, trust has been betrayed and many losses can result for both partners.
Marriage counseling can help couples deal with the overwhelming feelings that can occur after learning your spouse has had an affair. It can help couples grieve the many losses that can accompany infidelity. Such as loss of what you thought your relationship was. Loss of trust. Loss of special-ness.
3. Loss of Attraction: Many couples come to marriage counseling because they don’t feel as they once did toward their spouse. They don’t feel as passionate or attracted as they once did. Their sex life has declined and they are feeling confused about how to move forward.
Marriage counseling can help couples communicate about what intimacy means to them and what they need to feel both emotionally and physically connected to each other. It can help couples get to the heart of what’s been impacting their intimacy and attraction toward one another.
These are 3 common relationship issues seen by marriage counselors. But these are not the only reasons as there are many more that may bring couples into marriage counseling.
Some couples want to enhance their relationship and seek marriage counseling to learn ways to continue building their communication skills and to continue developing a long lasting marriage.
If you’ve been thinking about seeing a marriage counselor, I hope this provides some helpful information on a few common relationship issues marriage counseling can help with.
