Emotion Focused Therapy for Couples

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Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) is short-term therapy (generally) with the objective to develop and recognize crucial emotional responses to form a secure bond between partners.
Approximately 70 to 75 percent of couples essentially move from distress to recovery using EFT and about 90 percent of couples show significant improvement in their relationships. This method is a relatively new approach developed by Dr. Susan Johnson. It is based on the idea of clear and explicit conceptualizations of adult love and marital/relational distress.

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Integrative Behavioural Couples Therapy

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Integrative Behavioral Couple Therapy (IBCT) is originated in Behavior Therapy, with couples integrating in two stages. The first stage begins with defining goals of acceptance and change as positive outcomes. The second stage is where the couple integrates into treatment strategies, under a consistent behavioral theoretical framework.
Couples who succeed with this approach usually make some definitive changes to accommodate each other’s needs. This is a result of growth of emotional acceptance of one another.
IBCT was developed by Andrew Christensen and Neil S. Jacobson. Recently, this approach has been one of the main techniques for couple therapy in North America.

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Solution Focused Therapy

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Solution Focused Therapy (SFT) is a goal-oriented approach, as opposed to methods that focus on cause(s) of the problem at hand. If there is no need to recognize the root causes of the issue, SFT is an effective approach as it places emphasis on what is possible and changeable at the present time.
The nature of SFT allows for short-term discussion; usually between 1 and 3 sessions are required. This method was developed by Steve de Shazer and Insoo Kim Berg in 1940s and is constructed on clients’ strengths that are already within them.

 

 

Family System Therapy

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Family System Therapy (FST) is a structured, reputable therapeutic approach that looks as the family as a system with a set of relationships, behaviors and patterns. Thus, individuals are inseparable from their relationship network and, during therapy, should be understood within the context of their family and social setting. This method is one of the major therapeutic approaches to help families, couples and adolescents alike as they learn about the subsystems within the family structure, including parental, sibling and couples’ subsystems.

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Communication and Conflict Resolution

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In any relationship, there may come a time where communication may not seem as effective as it used to be, and conflict seems more difficult to overcome. When a relationship forms habits, such as excessive criticism, contempt, defensiveness or stonewalling, this could be an indicator that there are issues that need to be addressed. These four habits are known as the four horsemen, and are all seen as hostile communication, and are all able to spark conflict. During our intervention with couples, the context behind these habits can be explored, understood, and managed appropriately to help everyone in the relationship grow past the conflict. Conflict resolution can also be addressed, developing and adapting methods of coping to ensure that all issues are dealt with a healthy manner.

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Frequency and Duration in Couple Therapy

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Based on our experience, we suggest weekly sessions to maximize effectiveness of therapy until a resolution is reached. In some cases, after the initial assessment, couples may need to attend sessions individually to resolve their own personal barriers and obstacles before they come together in the intervention process.

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