While problems become increasingly complex and entrenched, children become profoundly affected as well, so by the time a phone call is made to make an appointment, problems are often severe. Many couples wait years before finally making the decision to receive help.

Then what? Who do you call? What qualifications and experience make a therapist a good fit for both spouses together as a marital unit? Does the therapist have a doctorate degree in Professional Psychology from an accredited university program, serving internships, and post doctoral residencies? Most importantly, are they licensed to practice psychology in the state you live in, with at least 10-15 years of full time experience working with couples or where at least half of their full time case load is dedicated to relational, marriage, and/or family systems? Does the therapist call you back for a free phone interview before scheduling you so that you have some familiarly with the way he/she works in therapy, their approach, techniques, etc. before you see them in person? What are considered to be reasonable charges for services? Is it better to pay for a more experienced, proven professional or try a recent graduate who is “learning on the job”? What does your budget allow for? What other professionals, in addition to psychologists, provide couples therapy? Do they have doctorate level training and degrees, and if not, what makes them qualified to treat you? Do they have significant experience with child therapy in case your children are affected by your marital problems? These are just some of the questions you should consider in choosing a therapist. Location alone should be of secondary importance in most cases. Fees can be misleading (i.e. a “cheap” therapist may see a couple for 2-3 years in therapy versus an “expensive” therapist who may get you results in several months, actually saving you many hundreds of dollars). On the other hand, the amount of money you spend may not predict successful outcome.

Before choosing a therapist, make sure the therapist calls and interviews you on the phone first and answers your questions. A good, in depth initial phone call with a prospective therapist can go a long way in making you feel comfortable that you have made the right choice.

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What used to be just “joking” now becomes hostile sarcasm, taking “jabs” at one another or avoiding conflict “just to get along”. The “honeymoon” stage is over and now you begin to wonder if the two of you are compatible or not. Whereas previously, there was no criticism of one another, one or both parties start to notice the habits of each other and there is increased scrutiny of one another.

How and why comments are made to one another become more important. Casual, free-flowing communication gets replaced by hesitancy to be forthright or the parties resort to have a “tone” with one another. A stressful job or children with behavioral problems may exacerbate the interactive dynamics between husband and wife. Neither party seems to get better at communicating. The couple then begins to see their emotional closeness waning and withering away. These are just some of the warning signs that often lead to further deterioration of the relationship.

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From the thoroughness of the initial evaluation to the live interactive dynamics of the counseling sessions themselves, Arizona Couples strives for excellence in therapy and counseling services for adults. All couples complete a comprehensive evaluation which is customarily followed by an intensive course of counseling. Counseling of couples occurs in a private, non-judgmental environment designed to encourage openness and honesty.

Intricate restructuring of the couples’ interactive communication dynamics are carefully balanced with the couples’ emotional and psychological needs and requirements. In this way, careful consideration is paid to each individual’s personality characteristics. Clients with psychological disorders may be offered additional professional treatment to enhance the outcome of their counseling. Treatment arrangements can also be made for clients with substance abuse problems whose marriages have suffered as a result. Arizona Couples is a full service practice which uses only licensed psychologists to provide professional services to the public, therefore ensuring some of the highest level of therapist credentialing based on education, training and experience.

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The truth is that, yes, there are reasonably normal families by most methods of what constitutes normality. No family is perfect but perfection is not necessary to reveal what a reasonably normal family is like. No, it is not normal for parents to be screaming and yelling in front of their young children at the dinner table. No, it is not normal for either parent to be openly drunk, stumbling around the house, shouting out obscenities at family members.

Exposure to these kinds of conduct affects children in profound ways. Very young children (i.e. 6 and younger) often do not have the intellectual and emotional capacity to properly understand and protect themselves from these influences. Chronic exposure to unhealthy families throughout childhood and adolescence significantly increase the likelihood that, as adults, they will choose partners to play out, at least to some extent, the dramas their parents played out with one another. This ensures a generational transfer of dysfunction from one generation to the next, perhaps not in full or 100% of the time, but to a troubling and significant degree.

The post Were you Raised in a “Dysfunctional” Family as a Child? appeared first on Arizona Couples.

When issues arise in a relationship, don’t put yourself down.  Problems in relationships arise regularly.  We live in a fast-paced world.  After a brief drive from Santan to our office in Mesa, we help you understand your relationship problems and discuss solutions.  There’s nothing wrong with acknowledging when you believe there may be relationship problems.  Acknowledgement is often the first step in resolving issues.

If you know in your heart that you care for your partner, let’s help you strive for success in your relationship.  Contact our Arizona Couples therapists for a free phone consultation.  We believe that Santan, among other cities, is within the geographical area that we strive to serve.  We offer what some consider the most customized marriage counseling and couples therapy in the greater Mesa area.

Couples therapy isn’t only for marriages.  If you are in a long-term relationship that you want to make last, but are experiencing issues, we can help.  Often times, pre-marriage counseling can be one of the best investments in your relationship that you can make.

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Sooner or later, many spouses discover excessive, often unnecessary emails, texting, telephone calls, and lunch outings pertaining to their loved one’s relationships with certain people at work. Instead of being home for a family meal on Friday night, there is a late notice from John that he won’t be home for dinner because of “important business” with Jane, his manager at work. They have agreed to have a few cocktails at happy hour to “strategize” the new budget plan for the upcoming fiscal year.

Mary at first does not think much of it, however, she begins to notice that her husband is “too tired” to talk with her when he gets home late. She notices he is being more critical of the 15 pounds she put on over the last few months. She finally poses the question to her husband: “Are you having an affair?” He answers “Of course not, you are crazy. I don’t have sex with my boss!”

As John and his supervisor spend more and more time together, much of it unnecessary, but technically “not sexual” then everything is fine, right?

Well, not so fast. Now it turns out Jane’s husband has become suspicious of his own wife and calls Mary to see if she’s worried about John’s behavior lately.

The next day, Mary Google searches “Marriage Therapy, Mesa AZ” for the marriage therapist nearby and makes an appointment. You decide what goes on next.

The post Am I having an Emotional Affair with one of my Co-workers? appeared first on Arizona Couples.

Should you find yourself unable to move past an issue in your marriage or frelationship, consider a couples therapist.  At Arizona Couples, we initiate healing by talking with each partner individually to gain their perspective on the relationship.  We understand what is needed to heal that person.  We then progress into a couples therapy session and attempt to bridge the perspectives in a welcoming environment for communication.

Communication is another key to a successful relationship.  Waiting for an issue to go away will never resolve anything.  Our customized approach to couples therapy helps individuals confront issues and work out the answers mutually.  It all starts with an in-depth review with each person, individually.  This helps us narrow down anything that could be contributing to issues within the relationship.  After this review we bring the couple together for discussions.  At this point, the goal is improving communication.

What makes our Queen Creek couples therapy a success is that we feel strongly about encouraging long lasting change in a relationship.  For that reason, our consultations are thorough.  We aim to get to the root of all issues.  With over 20 years of experience, our philosophy on relationship counseling for couples from Queen Creek is to customize the treatment for each couple.

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Our main focus is to help develop relationships and improve communication.  With over twenty years of experience, our philosophy of care is to offer detailed guidance and expert advise.  Being just a short drive from Apache Junction, we are motivated to help you and your partner form a relationship to last a lifetime.  Take advantage of our free phone consultation by calling 480-545-5334.  No matter the time, don’t hesitate to call.  We have receptionists available to take your call 24/7.

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A relationship should be built to last, especially when marriage is involved in the equation. Even though the love may be strong in any particular relationship, there are times when couples drift apart and focus more on differences and conflict than the feelings of love that initially brought them together. Our focus at Arizona Couples is to help partners in a struggling relationship recognize the source of their problems and move forward with a plan in mind to deal with the setbacks that so often send couples down a dangerous road. We provide the most thorough and effective marriage counseling and couples therapy Tempe AZ has to offer.

Problems can and will arise whether you’re in the beginning, middle, or late stages of a relationship. The real key to building a successful relationship is to forgive one another of trespasses and try to move forward with renewed hope, optimism, and love. Of course, it’s not always possible to recover from difficult phases of the journey on your own. Sometimes you need marriage counseling or couples counseling to resolve differences and start back on the road to love and bliss. That’s where we come in. We begin our evaluation by working with each partner individually to gain an understanding of their personality attributes, pains, and problems, then we move forward to couple therapy sessions so partners can learn more about one another and resolve issues in a calm environment. All of our sessions are directed by one of the most thorough and experienced relationship specialists in the East Valley.

Marriage Counseling Tempe AZ and Premarital Counseling Tempe AZ

Even the most successful relationships can struggle from time to time. When you and your partner fall on hard times, you need to seek out couples counseling to resolve issues quickly and prevent the formation of more serious conflict. At Arizona Couples, we offer marriage counseling and premarital counseling in Tempe AZ so partners in any stage of a relationship can find the help they’re looking for.

Medical Problems, Substance Abuse, or Psychiatric Problems

For those couples that may have medical, substance abuse, or psychiatric problems interfering with their relationship, Arizona Couples not only uses a highly qualified State Licensed, National Register Psychologist to do the actual counseling, but can arrange for medical or psychiatric interventions with its network of outside specialists to provide additional care.

Contact Us:

Arizona Couples, being a Trademarked specialty service for couples and individuals with relationship issues, uses only State Licensed Doctors of Psychology, with over 20 years’ experience, to provide highly detailed and expert guidance to the public.

Please contact us anytime for a free phone consultation. Arizona Couples’ answering secretaries take phone calls 7 days a week 24 hours a day to schedule appointments for weekdays and late evenings. You can reach us at (480) 545-5334.

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The relationship therapists at Arizona Couples have the knowledge, expertise, and experience needed to help you repair the problems in your marriage so you can live a happier, healthier, and more fulfilling life with your partner.

Relationship and marriage problems are more common than you think. Whether you need help navigating a small rough patch in your marriage or you and your partner are struggling with long-term issues, you can benefit from couples counseling at our Mesa, AZ clinic. We help hundreds of clients discover the source of their marriage problems by conducting a thorough evaluation and then following it up with intensive counseling sessions that are meant to bring marriage and relationship partners closer together in unity and love. If you’re experiencing troubles in your marriage, maybe it’s time to think about marriage counseling Mesa, AZ.

How Can Relationship Counseling Improve my Marriage?

Each person brings their own unique personality and problems to a marriage. At times it can be difficult to manage one’s own emotional issues while trying to support a spouse and still maintain a high degree of functionality within a marriage. At Arizona Couples, we try our best to offer the best marriage counseling and couples counseling Mesa, AZ has available. We want success for each client we work with, and that’s why we put every ounce of effort possible into understanding the situation and helping marriage partners resolve their issues.

Premarital Counseling Mesa AZ

Trouble and conflict in relationships is not solely reserved for married couples. In some cases partners can experience trouble before ever walking down the aisle. We can work with people at any stage of a relationship, including the premarital stage. The goal with premarital couples counseling is to identify issues and conflicts that could potentially cause problems after marriage and find ways to work through those problem areas. Premarital counseling is a perfect way to begin your marriage on the right path.

Medical Problems, Substance Abuse, or Psychiatric Problems

Medical problems, substance abuse, and psychiatric troubles have a tendency to ruin relationships if appropriate action isn’t taken early on. If you or your relationship partner are struggling with any of these issues, rest assured our clinic can provide you with the help needed to enjoy a full and lasting recovery. If the situation permits, we’ll reach out to a specialist who can provide additional assistance, including a psychiatric intervention.

Contact Us:

Arizona Couples is a Trademarked, relationship therapy service meant to help those who desire a more fulfilling partnership with their spouse or significant other. Our psychologists are State Licensed and have the experience necessary to help couples resolve the difficulties in their relationship. For over 20 years we have been proud to provide guidance and direction to couples in need.

Please contact us for a free consultation. We offer appointments in the morning, afternoon, or evening to better accommodate your schedule. We respond to calls 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. Call us at (480) 545-5334.

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