DIPAC offers Couples Counselling services for the Canberra, Queanbeyan and ACT region from our offices at Level 1 - 18 National Circuit, Barton ACT. So if you need to discuss your relationship or just want to talk to someone, we can help. Call today on: 02 6198 3423 or use our contact form and we will call you back.
Relationships can be very complicated. Relationships can be made even more complex when you throw in the factors of children, marriage, money, and career demands. This article will explain why couples counselling is necessary and if you should consider partaking in some sessions.
What is couples counselling?
Couples counselling allows you and your partner to share your frustrations and concerns. Our counsellors are very experienced and your therapist can offer varying strategies in order to manage you and your partner's concerns. The most common strategies are open discussion, role-playing, and an analysis of negative and damaging behaviours.
Many couples are concerned with couples counselling as they are unsure of the biases of the counsellor. In other words, they believe that the counsellor may take sides during the session. However, this is not the case. Professional counsellors and therapists are aware of personal bias and take efforts to contain those biases. DIPAC's experienced counsellors will never let their biases affect their judgement in a particular case.
What will be discussed?
Your first session, in particular, is important. This allows you and your partner to lay down some ground rules with regards to what you want to discuss and so on. After the administration has been taken care of, your counsellor will then take a brief history from you about the relationship and from each individual.
Following this, you will discuss any issues you may be having in your relationship with your counsellor and how long these issues have been present. In addition to any efforts already taken to address your issues and your expectations from the counselling.
The purpose of the first few sessions is to relax you and your partner and gently ease you into the counselling. This will make it easier to share feelings, discuss difficult topics, and analyse methods of communication and behaviours in the relationship.
The work is not only done in the counselling office, however, you may also be given some work to do at home. For instance, you may be given a diary in which you both can record feelings and issues you may have, or you may have to work on certain behaviours, such as physical interactions and so on.
The purpose of the counselling process is to bring the relationship to a new level of understanding. It will improve your communication and your partner's struggles. Additionally, it is important to remember that every relationship will have arguments and disagreements. Couples counselling will help you understand how to argue and disagree without damaging the relationship.
Do I need couples counselling?
It is not uncommon for couples to be apprehensive of couples counselling. They may see it as a sign that they're not meant to be together, and that they should just break up - but this is not the case. If couples attend a counselling session with an open mind and a willingness to work with both their partner and their counsellor, the relationship will benefit.
Counselling will allow your relationship to work past its issues. Rather than being a sign of a weak relationship, it is a sign that your relationship is strong enough to overcome any trials you are currently struggling with.
If you are having trouble with your relationship, and even if you are not, you can always benefit from having couples counselling. At DIPAC Counselling, we offer professional couples counselling Canberra couples can rely on. We also offer our services in the Queanbeyan and the ACT region. Feel free to call DIPAC Counselling on: 02 6198 3423 or use our contact form and we will call you back.