Pre-Marital Counseling

PRE-MARITAL COUNSELING

Are you a new couple contemplating engagement or marriage and need some helpful guidance?

Are you getting married again and need some help addressing the issues, concerns and transitions related?

Do you have questions, concerns or doubts related to the decision about whether or not to get married?

Do you feel difficulty talking about the important issues you will face as a married couple with your partner?

Are you struggling with difficulties or issues surrounding your upcoming marriage?

If you answered yes to any of these you’re on the right track towards making a more informed decision that could lead to higher levels of satisfaction!

Studies have shown that the majority of couples who engage in pre-marital counseling had more positive results than 80% of the couples who did not

Studies also show that continued counselling/therapy improved married couples’ communication and decreased conflicts, resulting in higher reports of overall satisfaction within their marriage

Whether you are a couple deciding to get married for the first time, or you have been married before and are considering getting married again, Pre-Marital Counseling can be a helpful and proactive way for you to begin the journey!

Before getting married it is important to be able to talk about difficult topics you will face after marriage and throughout married life. When making a decision about spending the rest of your life with someone, you should make sure you’re compatible on the important and inevitable issues, situations, changes, and transitions you may face in the years to come. You’ll want to know if moving forward with this person will bring forth a positive and supportive union or if it will raise concerns that could potentially hinder your plans for the future.

Some of the topics you should address when engaging in pre-marital counseling include: why you want to get married, why you want to marry this particular person, roles you will play in the marriage, how you will make important decisions, how you will resolve conflicts, where you will live, how you will divide household chores, debt you may bring into the marriage, how to handle finances, importance of friends and family, whether or not to have children, religious or spiritual issues/beliefs, health issues, intimacy and sex, and each person’s expectations, goals, desires and needs, both as an individual, as well as within a marriage/partnership.

Additionally, if this is not the first marriage for one or both partners you’ll want to discuss expectations for blending families, roles you will play in disciplining the other person’s children in a shared home, roles an Ex may play if you share children, legal issues you have regarding past relationships, and how to handle money or spending on your own children/family.

So, why engage in pre-marital counseling if you can just talk about them with one another?

When engaging in any type of therapy/counseling you are working with a professional who can help guide you through all of the important and difficult issues, concerns, and conversations without judgment or bias. Therapists can help you to learn skills that will help you to improve communication, decision making, problem solving, and conflict resolution. Therapy can help you to learn, understand and gain insights into your own and your partner’s emotions. Therapy/counseling can help you face, accept, cope and move forward through the difficulties and issues that exist or may arise throughout the pre-marital process and prepare you for managing them better in marriage and the future. It can also help you to understand yourself better as an individual and as a partner. It can also help to identify unhealthy behaviors and patterns in a relationship and help you correct them moving forward. Furthermore, participating in therapy/counseling in the pre-marital stage can help you to see all of the benefits you will gain from the process not only in your relationship, but within yourself, therefore, it may also make it easier and more comfortable for you to seek help during your married years should the need arise.

Additionally, making life changing decisions such as whether or not to get married can cause high stress, fears, emotional issues, and anxiety. Whether you, your partner or both are having fears about marriage, high stress, anxiety or other emotional issues related to the decision as to whether or not to get married, consider psychotherapy. Psychotherapy and CBT are evidenced based treatments that have been proven to be successful and the most effective forms of treatment for depression, anxiety and related stresses. They are very helpful in addressing and treating all of the symptoms related to those experienced by people dealing with the various issues that arise during the pre-marital stage, as well as when making any life changing decisions.

As I have mentioned on my other pages on this site, I use CBT as the basis for my psychotherapy, along with other methods, approaches, and strategies tailored to you as a unique individual and/or as part of a couple to help you gain all you need from your journey through the therapy process.

Whether you're seeking counseling to help guide you through the pre-marital stage in your

relationship or struggling with emotional issues related to pre-marital decisions,

you're in the right place!

Together we can help you get the clarity and confidence you need to help you make the decisions you need to make in order to have the life you deserve to have!

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