Are your ready to build a solid foundation for your marriage?
At Evolution Wellness in Wilmington, NC, we have licensed therapists who can help you and your partner prepare for a fulfilling, long-lasting marriage through premarital counseling.
Our couples counselors are here to guide you in strengthening your relationship before marriage by providing techniques to help you and your partner improve communication, prioritize closeness, manage conflicts, and achieve a successful, loving partnership.
What is premarital counseling?
Premarital counseling helps couples prepare for marriage. More specifically, premarital counseling gives couples a space to talk to a professional about their relationship. This helps to ensure that couples are beginning their marriage with stability and good communication.
Also, premarital counseling is helpful for identifying issues in the current relationship before they spill over into a marriage. That way, the weaknesses that couples are facing now can be solved before they become larger problems after marriage.
How can premarital counseling help you and your partner?
Premarital counseling can help couples understand each other better by encouraging them to talk about important topics that in relationships like:
- Money
- Beliefs and Values
- Roles in Marriage
- Intimacy
- Children and Parenting
- Family and Relationships
- Decision Making
- Anger Management
- Quality Time
In taking the time to listen and communicate their thoughts and feelings about these important relationship factors, couples can gain insight into how to support each other and address conflicts. Additionally, premarital counseling helps partners improve their ability to set realistic expectations for marriage and develop skills for compromising.
The Gottman Method
Especially when using the Gottman Method, premarital couples therapy can help partners feel more connected, improve communication, and manage conflict in a healthy way. In order to foster a satisfying marriage that is long-lasting and harmonious, it is important to lay a strong foundation in communication, trust, friendship, and problem-solving.
Moreover, premarital counseling can help couples establish a positive attitude about seeking help down the road.
Premarital Couples Counseling Assessment at Evolution Wellness
Successful counseling experiences begin with you and your partner finding a therapist that fits your needs and supports your goals for premarital couples therapy. To align with this, our providers conduct thorough assessments with couples before beginning the therapy journey.
Your therapist will work with you together and separately to understand each partner’s family history, prior relationships, values, beliefs, and goals. This phase helps the therapist form effective strategies and therapy plans tailored to your relationship. The couples counseling assessment happens in four stages:
Stage 1
In the initial counseling session, your therapist will evaluate you and your partner. At this stage, he or she will also begin to dive into the history of the relationship. In doing so, your counselor can take a look at the relationship’s strengths and struggles and how the past plays a role in the present. During this first counseling session, your therapist may also ask you and your partner to discuss a conflict you are experiencing in your relationship to show how you are your partner interact and manage conflict.
Stage 2
Next, your therapist will assign you some homework tasks. Specifically, you and your partner will be asked to fill out an in-depth survey online through the Gottman Institute. After reviewing your surveys, your counselor will meet with each partner individually to evaluate their family history, past relationships, values, and therapy goals without the influence of the other partner.
Stage 3
Then, the couple will meet with their counselor together again to discuss some findings of the assessment and establish a tailored treatment plan.
Stage 4
Moving forward, the couple and therapist meet weekly for hour long sessions to learn and practice interventions to improve their conflict management skills, increase their friendship and intimacy, heal past hurts, and address the couple’s needs.
What can you expect during premarital counseling?
Together, you, your partner, and your counselor will figure out which areas of the relationship can be worked on. This strategy helps you and your partner understand what challenges you may need to overcome. Then, your counselor will help you both create a vision for your marriage. Also, you’ll work as a team to set goals and work to achieve the relationship you truly expect and desire.
Making Decisions Together
The Gottman Method for premarital counseling works towards overcoming common barriers to happiness and closeness. Equally important is that this method supplies couples with the strategies they need to build a strong and lasting relationship.
While all relationships have difficult moments, it is important for a couple to learn how to make healthy, mutually beneficial decisions. That way, couples are working together to solve the issues at hand and strengthen the marriage.
Improve Communication Skills
In premarital couples therapy, you and your partner will learn about each other more intimately to improve communication about feelings, wants, and needs. In addition, you will understand the importance of creating shared meaning and how to connect through traditions and routines.
Identify Issues Before they Become Problems
Premarital counseling can help you and your partner identify issues before they become major relationship challenges. You can expect your therapist to help you foster your respect and appreciation for each other. The ultimate goal is to ensure that your love can last the test of time.
Overall, premarital counseling provides you and your partner with the tools to strengthen the passion, admiration, connection, and trust in your relationship. That way, you can develop the marriage you’ve always wanted!
Start Premarital Counseling in Wilmington, NC
We know this can be hard. It’s possible that you’ve been debating seeking help for months, and things in your relationship have come to a head. However, we are so glad you found us and have taken the courageous first step to learn more about strengthening the foundation of your relationship. The therapists at our counseling center in Wilmington, NC are confident that together, we can equip you with the tools you need to face and overcome all of the challenges in your life. And, we offer online therapy in North Carolina for your added convenience. Follow the steps below to start anxiety treatment in Wilmington, NC.
- Contact our counseling center at (910) 202-4326.
- Get matched with one our our skilled premarital therapists.
- Find relief from anxiety and be present in life again.
Other Services at Evolution Wellness
Our counseling center in Wilmington, NC provides mental health services to meet your needs, both in-person and online. And, not only do we provide premarital counseling, but also depression treatment, EMDR therapy, trauma therapy and PTSD treatment, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Further, our family therapists are LGBTQ affirming and offer counseling for families, couples, women, and teens, too! More specifically, our couples therapists can help with everything from marriage counseling and sex therapy to divorce counseling. Our welcoming and compassionate therapists are ready to meet you where you are and help you heal.
