Couples Therapy in Denver, CO

Couples therapy is a worthy investment for all sorts of reasons and in all sorts of seasons. Some couples want to strengthen their bond before making a commitment for the long haul. Many are in the thick of the same rapidly escalating, recurrent fight. Others have been operating with tension and distance between them that can feel worse than the heat of conflict. Some are rebuilding trust after a betrayal. Some are facing a major life transition that’s straining the relationship in unexpected ways. Some have simply drifted and want to find their way back to each other before more time passes.

Whatever prompts you through the door, my essential approach is the same: I work from Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) which treats most relationship distress as a reinforcing cycle that needs disruption through new experiences. The core issue is usually less to do with what you’re fighting about and more about whether you can reach for and receive each other when it matters.

Through EFT, couples start to find more clarity and stability in their relationship. Fights or stalemates sting less, don’t drag out or intensify the same way, maybe don’t even surface as often. They start to feel more like a navigable place of difference between two different people that care about each other (normal, healthy!) and less like a miserable trap with no way out. Partners feel more seen, heard, and “gotten” by their significant other, and even gain a better understanding of themselves – their own patterns, fears, longings and needs. There’s more room to breathe in your day-to-day, and more space to offer grace to your partner without feeling like you’re going to lose out for yourself.

I work with couples in Denver on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays with limited availability on Wednesdays for clients based in Lafayette, as well as virtually across Colorado.

Common reasons couples reach out include:

• Constant conflict or fights that escalate quickly and don't resolve

• Feeling disconnected, like roommates instead of partners

• Rebuilding trust after infidelity or a breach of trust

• Communication breakdowns leaving partners feeling unheard, shut out, or talked past

• Major life transitions piling stress on the relationship

• Considering separation and wanting clarity before deciding

Most couples begin with a joint session, where I get a sense of where you are at, what's been hard, and what you're hoping for. From there, and depending on how things unfold, I typically meet individually with each partner once. These sessions are about getting to know each of you more fully, your history, your attachment patterns, and what you carry into the relationship before we come back together.

Once we're working as a trio, sessions take a general shape. We slow things down considerably, enough to get a solid look at the cycle that’s caught you both in its grips. We take a magnifying glass to the moments where things go awry. Once you’re able to recognize them happening in real time, you can learn to start to interrupt them together.

With more stability, we then go even closer, taking a microscope to what's actually happening underneath: what each of you is feeling, needing, and not quite saying. Our goal is to really get to the roots of what is driving the pain points and help you hear and find each other there. I support you in practicing different ways of interacting that over time help build a relationship where you both feel safe enough to be honest, and open enough to get closer.

I don't assign homework. The work happens in session, with the goal of you taking your experiences home, and it's enough.

60 min

$180

I offer a limited number of sliding scale spots to clients for whom therapy is otherwise inaccessible due to financial barriers.

*At this time, Tender Edge Therapy is private-pay only. While I don’t accept insurance, if you have out-of-network coverage, I can provide superbills upon request.