Relationship And Marriage Challenges
Counseling for Straight and Same Sex Couples
Dr. Hooper will help you Learn To:
- Understand how you got where you are
- Develop a vision for where you would like to go
- Practice new skills to help you get there
- Listen with empathy
- Stay calm and not be reactive
- Hear each other’s hearts
Had you known then what you know now, you might not even have connected up with your partner. But here you are, and enough energy and time has been invested that you are not sure you want to part. But what will it take to stay? Sometimes it seems that you just talk past each other. And you have been so used to being misunderstood or hurt when you try to communicate that you find that you are always ready for the worst. If only there was a way to start over, but how to get over the same stumbling blocks…that’s the question.
Dr. Hooper utilizes one of the most advanced inventories for couple relationships available today, the Gottman Relationship Checkup.
The Gottman Relationship Checkup is comprised of five sections:
- Friendship and Intimacy: relationship satisfaction, emotional connection, romance, and admiration
- The Safety Scales: trust, chaos, commitment, and emotional philosophies
- The Conflict Scales: stress, relationship harshness, and conflict management
- The Shared Meaning System: shared rituals, values, and goals
- Individual Areas of Concern: individual issues, safety, sex, depression, drug and alcohol use, violence, anxiety, and other issues that may need psychological or psychiatric help
Combined with your telling of your relationship struggles and this advanced inventory, Dr. Hooper will assist you to understand how you got here, develop a vision for where you would like to go, and practice new skills to help you get there.
It is often the case that the very traits that attract us to our partners are the traits that become dividing points. But when we are able to listen with empathy, learn how to stay calm and not be reactive, and hear each other’s hearts, then both parties can have their needs met rather than experiencing further wounding and disappointment.
There are magic moments in therapy in which I see a shift in posture, tone, and expression. From turning away, the couple begins to turn toward. The rigid defenses give way to a gentleness and tentative openness. These are sacred moments. The couple begins to turn from focusing in the past, and begin to envision their future. And in that moment, they are walking a new path.
If you are willing, the places where you have sustained deep scars can become illumining stars that can light your journey going forward. I would very much like to help you set foot on that journey.
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