Couples Therapy Internship: What To Expect

 

We tend to think that a couples therapy internship is something time limited. Although can be true, some couples therapy internships are extended beyond their one year contract. I know for me, this was the case and many of my other friends who had internships. 

Therefore, if you feel unhappy together and are considering breaking up with each other. Seeing a couples therapy intern could be a good decision for you.

Couples therapy internships are there to help couples solve issues. And remove obstacles in a relationship that typically prevents the couple from being intimate. Similarly, it also strengthens the connection between these two individuals by providing them with tools and techniques that help them understand each other. 

Regardless of whether your relationship is at its peak moments or you’re both struggling to find a reason to stay together. You can consider seeing a therapist who is completing a couples therapy internship. 

In the first scenario, it will help you maintain things just the way they are and prepare you how to deal with issues successfully when they appear to not harm your happiness. In the second scenario, the therapy will show you and your partner a new way of communicating that is not destructive. And brings you closer to your shared goal, whichever goal might be. 

Share Information About Your Relationship

A therapist will need to learn information about your relationship and you as individuals. Typically, the first session helps your therapist to get to know each of you on a personal level. Prepare to be asked a wide range of questions, from your childhood experiences and your family to how you met each other and the reasons for falling in love. 

While you both might be eager to jump into the discussion and share with the therapist the last argument you just had when leaving home, trust the process. Your therapist first needs the information about you as a couple to be able to understand the roots of the problems appearing in the relationship and find solutions that will work for you.

Don’t expect to go into details about your problems in your first session. Many people get discouraged after their first session because they haven’t talked in detail about the issues they are having with their partner. However, a therapist cannot advise on your relationship if they do not know you. The first sessions are about gathering information, whether it is a therapist or a therapy intern. 

Going to the Root of the Problems

There are many reasons why couples decide to go to couples therapy, with most of them involving having the same arguments over and over again, avoiding fighting and ignoring problems, and physical intimacy problems. 

Instead of worrying about what the therapist will say, you should think about all the issues you wish to address in the therapy. Also, don’t just prepare all arguments against your partner. Take a moment to see which of your actions are leading to heated discussions and which aspects of your personality are not that beneficial for yourself and your relationship.

Another thing that many couples do when going into therapy is having a strong opinion about the main problem of their relationship. For instance, you might feel that all the issues in the relationship arise from a lack of physical intimacy. And your therapist might discover that your relationship actually lacks trust and communication. 

While sharing your concerns in therapy, your therapist will be the one connecting the dots and seeking the root of your problem. They will also be the ones suggesting solutions and methods that will help you maintain a fulfilled, healthy relationship. 

Setting Goals and a Timeline

Once the couple is aware of the root of their relationship problem, they can start developing their goals for therapy. Usually, a therapist will assist you as a couple to determine these goals. After all, not all couples will have the same goals. Maybe you wish to fall in love again or enhance your communication. Maybe you wish to fight less because your children are always in the middle of it. Your goal will be tied to the solution of the main problem in your relationship. 

Of course, some couples will decide that the best goal for couples therapy is ending the relationship on good terms. During therapy, couples who are exhausted from fighting and really don’t see things changing in the near future might realize that there is nothing more to save in their relationship. Here, the therapy will serve them to learn how to let go of their relationship and all the problems healthily. This becomes incredibly valuable when stepping into a new relationship because the individuals from the relationship will not bring their old-relationship problems into a new one. 

Also, your couple therapy goals can change over the course of therapy. However, setting the goals is important because it provides couples with direction and it puts them on the same team as opposed to fighting each other all the time. Once the goals are determined, your therapist will help you develop a timeline. In other words, this takes into account how many months or years of therapy you will need to solve your main problems. This time can be also seen as a new, exciting period of a relationship.

Learning New Skills

You cannot solve the problem by applying the same method over and over again. If it didn’t work once, twice, or three times, you should probably seek a better solution. In couples therapy, couples are learning new skills that will benefit their relationship outside the sessions as well. 

The most common skills a couple will learn in therapy are: 

• Communication skills,
• Patience,
• Forgiveness,
• Trust and honesty,
• Selflessness,
• Stress management.

The majority of couples will have these skills, yet they forget about them at some point in the relationship. Therapy will remind you of how these skills can improve your relationship and bring you closer to your partner. Also, your couples therapy internship therapist will share methods to practice at home if you desire. After all, the most important work in therapy can be done at home with your partner. 

Your couples therapy internship therapist is providing you with guidance and valuable information, yet they are not able to repair a relationship on their own. That is why it is essential for you to do everything you can to rebuild the relationship and feel intimate with each other again. 

To see some of our fabulous couples therapy internship therapists, please grab a spot by emailing info@LCATLLC.com. They offer low rate cash sessions and a variety of options between telehealth and in person spots. 

Low Cost Therapy Available at Life Coaching and Therapy (LCAT)

 

About Life Coaching and Therapy

Life Coaching and Therapy (LCAT) is a therapy and coaching practice that transforms our clients lives through our flexible. Multi-technique approach and pleasure-skills training provided by systematically-trained and licensed therapists!

Get to know our founder and owner, Amanda Pasciucco, (a.k.a. The Sex Healer) a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT). And an AASECT Certified Sex Therapist (CST) that has developed innovative therapy programs and therapy videos that get results.

Our team of compassionate, licensed therapists and certified sex therapists help all clients who visit us for a variety of personal, relationship, intimacy and sex problems.

LCAT provides on-site appointments, as well as video chat and text therapy programs.

Learn more about how LCAT can help improve your life at What We Do.