Couple Dynamics & Conflict

There’s a profound change occurring in our relationship to space. In working remotely, it feels at times like we’re doing home visits. In video calls, we... Read more

Online couples therapy can be tough, especially with a high-stakes case. The developer of Emotionally Focused Therapy dives into the deep end with a couple... Read more

Couples therapist and bestselling author Esther Perel explains how life in quarantine is changing the dynamics of romantic relationships, and what this means... Read more

Ryan Howes interviews Laura Copley, licensed professional counselor and owner of Aurora Counseling about toxic relationships. Read more

A clinician who's spent almost two years doing online couples therapy shares the tips and strategies she's found especially helpful. Read more

Partners in quarantine are facing distinct challenges, says couples therapist and bestselling author Esther Perel. Here, she breaks down the patterns she's... Read more

Differences in how couples handle this situation can be a real bone of contention, but sometimes using humor, especially dark humor, gives us some sense of... Read more

A therapist is working with a couple in which one partner is clearly disengaged in therapy. She shows up and says she’s interested in improving the... Read more

Of all the meaningful sessions that take place in a therapist’s office, certain ones stand out. In this Symposium storytelling highlight, couples therapist... Read more

Satisfying our needs is a gift our partners give us. Being responsible calls for a willingness to ask clearly and vulnerably for what we want, and to tolerate... Read more

Being a good traffic cop can mean the difference between success or failure as a couples therapist.* Commentary by Peter Fraenkel Read more

Even though partners may forgive each other after a heated argument, the hurtful words that were hurled can be haunting nonetheless. Read more

To love another, it's important to get a sense of how you see, hear, and feel, so you can recognize your subjective picture or story of your partner and... Read more

Giving up being right doesn’t mean you give up your convictions. It means honoring a multiplicity of viewpoints. Rumi says, “Somewhere beyond right and... Read more

How to address one partner’s long-term issues in couples therapy without derailing work on the current relationship. Read more

In their featured address, the Gottmans explored what research has revealed about the crucial role the brain’s seven different command systems can play in... Read more

Therapy often involves entirely too much talking about new skills the client should put into place, but not enough rehearsing. Just as exposure training... Read more

Keeping the difficult work of couples therapy positive and upbeat might be easier, and more effective, than you think. Read more

Motivating couples to do their therapy homework may be the key to successful outcomes. Read more

The hallmark of John and Julie Gottmans’ work is taking the rare step of actually observing the broadest sample of couples they can find, rather than relying... Read more

Despite all the intellectual excitement it generated, the hard truth is that, so far, the systems revolution hasn’t led to very effective ways of doing... Read more

Cross-cultural couples face challenges that often aren’t addressed in therapy. Read more

According to renowned couples therapist Julie Gottman, one of the main predictors of a romantic relationship's success or failure is how well partners can... Read more

Are you working with partners who can't seem to escape cycles of criticism, contempt, defensiveness, and stonewalling? According to renowned couples therapist... Read more

Could eliminating blocks in couples therapy be as simple as learning where to tap? Read more

Terry Real shares the story of a couple’s transformation leading up to, and in the wake of, unexpectedly losing their daughter. Read more

Hedy Schleifer tells the story of a client couple that transform resentment and silence into shared acknowledgements of inner worlds and renewed intimacy. Read more

In at least 30 percent of couples who come to therapy, partners enter the consulting room with different agendas---one wants a divorce, the other wants to save... Read more

When clients are emotionally worked up, caught in fight-flight-freeze mode, all their hard-earned skills in empathic listening and responsible (and responsive... Read more

The pioneers who birthed couples and family therapy never paused to scienti cally study the relationships they treated. Now, after systematically observing and... Read more