Marriage or Relationship Counseling

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Whether married or not, whether gay or straight, all folks have relationship problems from time to time. Even family members have their share of difficulties with communication and other issues in the relationship. Relationship counseling helps overcome obstacles to intimacy. It helps to resolve conflicts, increase communication skills, and to enhance relationships. In relationship counseling people learn how to communicate more effectively, how to respond to situations rather than react, and how to negotiate differences rather than engage in a battle.

Relationships require that both people examine their own behavior and how it affects the relationship. Relationships are similar to dancing in that each partner may be able to dance well alone, but may have to learn new steps in order to dance with a partner. In relationship counseling the focus of the counseling is on the relationship; the relationship is the patient, not the individuals. Sometimes, however, it is necessary for individual coaching to take place, just as individual dance instruction might be necessary in order to help the couple dance more effectively together.

In relationship counseling a lot of attention is paid to how each party responds to the various issues they are confronting. There is no right or wrong way to respond; there are just different ways of responding. Some of them, however, are more effective than others and some work for the relationship and some do not. These are all issues to examined during the counseling sessions.

Divorce Counseling helps couples deal with the emotional issues inherent in dissolving a relationship. Divorce counseling can help you learn from your relationship so that some of the same mistakes can be avoided in the future. Divorce counseling helps the individuals cope more effectively with the separation process and begin planning for the future. Divorce counseling does not focus on trying to reconcile the relationship. It assumes that you and your partner want to end the relationship, but would like to do so in a way that you both can move on with your life. Divorce counseling is often very valuable for couples going through a divorce to help reduce the acrimony and pain allowing the divorce to move ahead more smoothly.

Crisis Counseling is problem centered for dealing with immediate, acute discomfort caused by some external event or life transition. Strategies are developed for coping with current distress.

Please click here to read "Making Your Marriage Work",
an article by Dr. Dreyfus.

For further information or consultation regarding psychological issues, or life coaching, you may contact Dr. Dreyfus by letter, phone, email, or fax.

You can e-mail him or call (310) 208-5700.