Great Couples Counseling in Lynwood, CA. Therapy to heal relationships.

Is your relationship in need of healing and strengthening for increased connection? I'm a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and a certified Prepare-Enrich Couples Counselor and offer professional couples counseling, premarital counseling, and marital couples counseling. I utilize communication skills, Attachment Theory and Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy to help restore your emotional bond and intimacy. Take the first step towards a fulfilling and lasting relationship and I look forward to working together with you!

Why do we seem to have the same arguments over and over again? How do I know if we are really supposed to be together? Are there things we could be doing to better support each other, to help each other grow and be our best selves? If we really love each other, why do we so often hurt each other? How do I know if this is real love, anyway? Relationships are hard. Even more than desire, they require effort and understanding to make them work. Often, even if two people really love each other, one or both may need help to maintain the right effort or understanding to keep the balance necessary for long-term success. Having outside, objective support can make all the difference.

All couples experience challenges. I specialize in helping couples through challenging times. Whether you are struggling with communication, sex and intimacy, or parenting, we work collaboratively to gain understanding and insight into the issue(s) so that the relationship can deepen and grow. I also help couples who are considering marriage and are not sure if they are a good fit. Even the best of relationships can feel difficult or discouraging at times. Together we can work through such difficulties so that your relationship can feel rejuvenated and fulfilling again.

Couples counseling is becoming more common since people are postponing marriage and choosing to live together, before marriage. Both choices have there difficulties, and we are equipped to work with people who are at any stage in their relationship. We guide clients toward their goals, educating them to better understand the reasons they are having difficulty.

Every relationship experiences arguments and conflict. That is an inevitable part of being in an intimate relationship. These differences do not have to undermine a relationship so long as the underlying patterns of interaction which keep these conflicts active can be understood and resolved. As a specialist in couples counseling, I seek to help a couple identify these patterns and learn how to listen with understanding while promoting the authenticity of each individual. I use an emotionally focused treatment which allows a couple to work through their conflicts while enhancing their feelings of attachment and closeness. With 32 years of experience, I have helped many couples do this.

Intimate, committed relationships can start off beautifully where you cannot get enough of your partner. Then, before you know it-the desire and passion are gone, you hurt each other's feelings, you feel misunderstood and resentful. Often times, couples go to counseling to work on "communication" "regain desire" and to "build trust". Communication is more than just the words we use, I can help you and your partner understand each other and ensure what needs to be said-is said. The desire that you once felt can be found again. Trusting each other can happen again-I will help you and your partner regain the intimacy, connection and bond that made you commit to each other.

Dr. Levine is a clinical psychologist, not simply a "marriage counselor." He often works with couples whose difficulties involve such problems as disagreements about dealing with relatives, children and friends as well as arguments over money, sex and unreasonable expectations. His approach is relaxed and non-confrontational, within the framework of what is known as "cognitive couples therapy." The goal is to reduce unrealistic demands and help with acceptance of the limitations of being human within the context of a close interpersonal relationship. You will find Dr. Levine to be fair, open-minded and even-handed in working with the couples he sees. He will answer the phone personally.

Couples therapy should not be about hashing over old wounds. Getting what you want from a relationship involves good communication and active listening, tolerance and forgiveness, emotional intelligence, having common goals and working cooperatively and, like all the bets things in life, presents us with a challenge. Relationships can be hard work but the work is rewarding and life-enhancing. I love to work with couples who are committed to improving their future rather than reliving their past.

The main thing I notice couples coming in for is to work on trust issues, communication problems, and lack of intimacy within the relationship. This can manifest into anger, affairs, shutting down, and a number of other behaviors. I work with couples FIRST on what does work, so that they can build upon skills they already possess within their relationship. 2: Teaching basic listening skills so that partners feel heard. 3: Teaching the couples how to communicate without attacking. 4: implementing those skills at home. Therapy is much more complex than this, and there are many more aspects of communication, but building strengths is very important to relationship success.

Couples may they be in a dating relationship, living together, engaged to marry, married, in business together, separating, divorcing, fighting over children, property, alimony or visitation, are often confronted with a breakdown in communication and an inability to resolve conflicts. Couple counseling aims to reveal the disconnect within a couple that often once had the ability to connect and function in harmony. Couples can quickly get off track with one another and need skilled guidance to help them learn to resolve conflicts, once again listen and communicate effectively as well as to be able to disagree without forcing the relationship to end.

I am a Level 3 Trained GOTTMAN METHOD COUPLES THERAPY (GMCT) counselor. GMCT is a research-based approach that will help you and your partner understand each other on a deeper level, better manage conflict and differences, turn toward each other, reignite intimacy, and make your life dreams come true. I work extensively with infidelity and betrayal, pre-marital, discernment (do I stay or do I go?) addictions. My practice is open to all sexualities, as well as non-monogamy couples.

All couples will face challenges. Let's face it, it's hard to live with another person. Some conflict is healthy and normal. But when it seems like you're arguing all the time, feeling negative about your partner, or feeling disrespected, it is time for help. I will teach you positive communication techniques, ways to feel like a team again, and regain the love in your relationship.

At the heart of a strong and intimate relationshp are two keystones - 1) Trust and 2) Commitment. The higher the trust, the higher the commitment in the relationship. The lower the trust, the lower the commitment. When trust and commitment is low, its the perfect breeding ground for unending fights, arguments, and betrayal in all forms. Couples therapy gets to the root of these 2 core issues and empowers the couple with effective tools to restore and renew their trust and commitment to each other.

My approach to counseling couples is to believe that all people in relationships want two things: To be loved and to be accepted. When couples seek psychotherapy, they are fighting because they do not feel loved but instead are feeling rejected, abaondoned or alone. People also are not feeling accepted but instead are feeling judged, criticized, or blamed for who they are. Couples will benefit from my approach as I help people learn how to work through hurt, anger and blame, love and forgiveness, and boundaires and acceptance. When you feel loved and accepted, you will benefit from wanting to work with one another to solve relationship problems and find success in being a couple.

Relationships are an area where young adults can struggle. Wanting to create lasting bonds, they don't always think about who is a good match for them, given their family values, and plans for their life. Past failed relationships can also leave sensitive young adults hesitant to open their hearts and try to find love again. I help sensitive young adults discover what it takes to create the loving relationship they've always dreamed of.

I want my clients to feel safe, understood, respected, and better able to deal with relationship issues. Couples counseling can help you better understand and respond to each other's needs, while maintaining your own unique identity. It will promote balance, clarity and give you the confidence to make important decisions. I offer support and stabilization during a crisis, and provide you with practical tools to improve intimacy, and replace conflict with more effective communication.

What brought you together? What drew you to each other? What are your shared hopes, dreams and values? These are just some of the questions that I ask couples in order to help re-connect them with what they hold dear to their hearts; with what they give meaning because I believe that what we give meaning to helps us face the difficult times in relationships.

I work with couples, gays and straights in all situations. Sometimes persons feel different and learning that we all really want the same thing in life which is understanding and love. Good COMMUNICATION is the key to LOVE! I can teach you how anger is changed into good communication when the methods are artfully taught. When anger is handled properly love ensues! Come in and test this method!!! What you say to another person is so important because that other person may not be able to forget those words. Changing the words helps you and your major relationships and can open up a new world in personal and business relationships. I use Imago Therapy tools and Relational life tools to help.

Couples counseling is an amazing experience. Your relationship is my client and I will work closely with both of you to identify the relational dance you participate in, and how we can interrupt the negative patterns you engage in, and instead promote healthier ways of connecting and attaching. Couples therapy can be a really fun and pleasurable experience where you get to know more about your partner and also about your self. Couples therapy works in a stage process. I will be there along each step of the way helping to make sure that you guys are connecting. I will help to empower you both so that you may enhance and strengthen your most important relationship!

How do you rate your partner? Do you just KNOW your relationship could be better? With Kevin Bergen, you'll find a specialist who can get you over your hurdles to relationship bliss. Are you tired of arguing? Is trust a problem now? Has one of you checked out of the relationship? Feeling alone or more like roommates? Kevin understands what you're feeling. He understands each of you equally, he'll affirm you when your partner is off track, and kick your butt when it's you who's out of line. If you want understanding and honesty, call Kevin for your couple's needs.

Do you envision a loving, respectful relationship with your partner? Would you like to strengthen your bond & gain a better understanding of your spouse? Are you interested in avoiding divorce & keeping your family together? I have some ways to help. In session I help couples improve communication, so that each person in the relationship feels heard, & solutions are fair & effective. I help you understand & respect your partner’s perspective & develop ways to compromise, to improve your relationship, without compromising your personal values. I also teach couples ways to discuss issues without arguments, establish fair rules and boundaries, & make your relationship rewarding and fun.

I have been helping couples heal their relationships for more than 29 years. Effective therapy includes developing a clear understanding of the different family "cultures" couples have been raised in, and a clear perspective of how early hurts and pain can be re-triggered by the current marital or couple relationship. Communication skills are essential for working through chronic or immediate pain a couple is experiencing together--and empathy for the each other's perspective is at the heart of those skills. It is also essential to know when a relationship has the potential to open up and grow, and when development together is no longer currently possible due to abuse or excessive hostility

Married, dating, heterosexual, gay, or bisexual? I specialize in emotional intimacy, sex, addiction, and trauma, any of which can derail a relationship. You can heal your relationship or end it. I can help either way. Improve communication and handle conflicts better. Get your emotional baggage out of the way so it doesn’t hurt your relationship. Better for the couple and especially better when there are kids. Have kids and you’re divorcing? You’re still tied together. We can make that less damaging for everyone. Kids do better when their divorced parents work together for the kids’ best interest – dealing with emotions and communication better and not putting kids in the middle.

In a relationship that you feel is stuck where neither partner feels loved, heard, or validated? I can work with you to change unhealthy patterns, learn new ways of communicating, and build a loving relationship. We will work together to create a new relationship vision for the future, a shared vision. I want to help you find the love you want and deserve.

My doctoral research was on the difference between intense/compelling & secure/comfortable romantic love experiences and I have been studying love for the past 35 years. I taught the Interpersonal Attraction/Romantic Love course at Chapman University, along with Human Sexuality & Sexual Disorders & Treatment. I am certified in Gottman Method Couples therapy, as an ASL (Gottman) Workshop Leader, and a Gottman Method Level I Teacher. I also have trained in Emotion-Focused, Imago, and Voice Dialogue approaches to give couples in relationships of all kinds the best help available in making troubled relationships good and good relationships even better.