Great Couples Counselling in Binbrook, ON. Therapy to heal relationships.

One of the most detrimental problems that I have seen in Family Therapy is when parents become so overwhelmed by life, inundated by the responsibilities with their children (hockey, karate, tutoring, piano, etc), and consumed in running the household that they forget about the relationship that they have with their spouse. I hear things like “I don’t even know my husband anymore”, “there just isn’t any time left for us”, “we are growing apart”, or “we can’t agree on anything; not the kids, not the house, not the dog… help!” All is not lost and there are ways to learn to balance all of the aforementioned intricacies of a family dynamic. You don’t have to hold it all together by yourself.

Couples Counselling Most relationships will become strained at some point and will begin producing maladaptive patterns. Relationship problems are rooted in our distorted egos, insecure attachment, emotional immaturity etc., which create to the many issues that develop for couples - infidelity, financial stress, poor communication, ill health, sexual divergence, household responsibility conflicts, addictions, etc., .... or just simply growing apart. Relationships can often be restored if help is sought soon enough. A counsellor can help reorient perceptions and emotions (how we look at a situation and how we feel about it) and assist the couple in adopting conscious structural changes.

Our couples counselling approach include increasing closeness and friendship behaviours, addressing conflict productively, and building a life of shared meaning together. Therapy is more structured and involves customizing principles from research to each couple’s particular patterns and challenges. It focuses on developing understanding and skills so that partners can get their needs met (especially when they are hurting), manage conflict, and learn how to repair their relationship when necessary, even in cases of infidelity. Overall, the goals of Meristem's approach is to assist couples in achieving a greater sense of understanding, respect, awareness and empathy toward each other.

We all long for connection. Many of us feel great in the times when a relationship is new and the connection is just developing. The problems come when we have to repair distance/rifts in that connection, or when we need to sustain and deepen our connection to our partners. Maybe we never learned how. Maybe we carry scars and trauma from past relationships. Maybe we have patterns in our histories that we never really dealt with. Maybe all of the above. Our work together will take all of that into account and in a non-judgmental environment, we will hold space for you both to learn how to repair, strengthen and maintain your most important relationships.

Healthy relationships and emotional connection are typically fostered by effective communication and boundaries. Therapy can help you and your partner understand the patterns you are currently feeling stuck in and learn how to communicate each of your needs and perspectives from a place of vulnerability, compassion, and care. I work with individuals, couples and families. Book a free consultation to explore if we are a good fit for therapy.

Couples desire to seek the most from their relationships. Whether it is rekindling a passion they once possessed, resolving disagreements in more effective ways, or fighting to exist as a loving partnership, building a secure emotional connection often lies at heart of it. As an emotionally-focused therapist (EFT), couples will be taught to recognize patterns that keep them trapped in conflict and interchange them with more adaptive patterns to assist them out of it. Through learning the principles of EFT, partners discover they can face new challenges together and develop a deep sense of emotional safety, security, and love.

You deserve to be happy in your relationship and I can help make that happen. Together, we will find the joy that once brought you together and bring the healing you need to make this relationship what you’ve always hoped it would be. Love isn’t easy; it takes work, but together we will make it fun. Together we can help get you back to where you belong.

I work to establish trust in both partners by setting boundaries of confidentiality and privacy especially when there is a need to clarify safety of each and to process any "secrets" that may impede successful open communication. Family history does impinge on marital dynamics and can interfere with emotional reactions from past family scripts that can surge into the present affecting communication Personal space boundaries and accountability are the basis of openness and respectful trust the linchpin of building on love that changes from physical chemistry to support for the other. Some common interests and passion for living well is the goal for both. Controlling behavior is called out.

We all want to love, be loved, and connect with our significant others. Yet, it can feel daunting at times, due to repetitive relationship patterns (influenced by our childhood wounding), poor communication skills, cultural/gender differences, and inability to negotiate “me” with “we”. So be it past trauma, poor communication skills, inability to handle stress, different upbringing (thereby different ways of doing things), or sexual challenges, among other things, I help couples identify the areas/habits which challenge them, behaviors which destroy relationships, and anything else that stands in the way of them achieving an intimate connection.