Pre Marriage Counseling Chevy Chase MD 
You have likely heard about pre marriage counseling in Chevy Chase, Maryland, but are unsure about whether or not it is something you and your significant other could benefit from.
Chevy Chase MD pre marriage counseling can help you and your partner or spouse to explore different ways to interact with one another, while also learning how to discontinue arguments before they get out of control. You’ll learn how to improve communication and decrease defensiveness. Both of you can discover how to explain what you want or don’t want with confidence and ease.
The right pre marriage counseling sessions can allow you and your family to share quality time with one another and bring care, patience, and understanding into the conversation. Criticism and blaming can decrease; thereby, bringing both of you closer together.
Two Types of Therapy
In general, no one person is 100% at fault for the problems in a relationship. Regardless of what is going on, both you and your partner have likely contributed to the relationship challenges you’re facing. Counseling tends to work best when both people are involved; however, sometimes one person is unwilling to attend sessions. In this case you can still go to individual counseling sessions where you can learn various skills including:
- How to communicate your needs, wants, and frustrations
- How to understand the feelings of your partner
- How to cope with difficult emotions
- How to resist criticizing your partner
The Benefits of Pre Marriage Counseling in Chevy Chase MD
Pre marriage counseling is much different from individual counseling; however not all counselors offer this type of therapy which is why it is important to talk with the prospective therapist beforehand to ensure you choose the right one. The benefits of couples therapy include:
No Taking of SidesIn individual counseling sessions, your therapist only hears your side of the story. He or she might act as your partner; thereby, causing you to feel as if they are on your side. This does not happen in couples therapy. Your therapist will listen to each of you and challenge both people to try harder, be kinder, and think in a new way. The right couples counselor should not take sides or insist that one person is completely to blame.
Encouraging Productive Communication
Your couples counselor should direct the therapy sessions in a way that meaningful discussions occur and lead to progress. There should not be any fighting or endless talking about feelings. Rather than judging either person, a counselor should look at the situation from an unbiased point of view and encourage both people to see how one another’s behavior can affect each other and the relationship as a whole.
Clarifying Relationship Issues
When two people are in a relationship, each person will have their own expectations that are so obvious that should not need to be said. For example, neither person may want to be physically abused. However, it is likely that both people also have different expectations which are the result of different life experiences. For instance, if one partner was raised in an abusive home, they could believe that frequent conflict is normal. For the other partner, this may be unacceptable.
Likewise men tend to hold their emotions in; something that they are frequently taught in their childhood and can cause problems in a relationship. Women on the other hand are often portrayed a certain image of how men and relationships should be, and when her partner falls short of this, she is disappointed. Pre marriage counseling in Chevy Chase MD can help both people to re-examine their expectations and clarify them with one another before they are married.
Are You Ready to Learn More About Pre Marriage Counseling?
Pre marriage counseling takes time, effort, and patience. It is a journey that can lead both partners to feel better about one another and the entire relationship. If you would like to talk with a couples counselor about your challenges, call Lindsey Hoskins & Associates to schedule an appointment for pre marriage counseling Chevy Chase MD couples recommend.