Dallas Whole Life Counseling is owned and operated by happily married couple of 24 years, Dr. Heather and James Robbins. Based on the ongoing success of their own relationship, and their shared decades of experience as couples counselors, the Robbins have designed a unique approach to couples counseling that equally emphasizes both male and female points of view. Rather than simply allowing couples to argue in session, the Robbins challenge couples to achieve clear, measurable goals from session to session.
What two issues do American couples argue about more than any other?
- Sex
- Money
Although disagreements regarding both sex and money can be especially intense, even leading to divorce in many cases, couples tend to argue about many other issues as well that marriage counseling can help address:
- Child Care
- Communication Styles
- Career Versus Family Commitment
- In-laws and Extended Family
- Affairs
- Household Chores
- Loss of Romance or Passion
- Anger Management Issues
- Substance Abuse Issues
The Typical Relationship
The typical romantic relationship follows a fairly predictable course. For the first 1-2 years, things tend to work smoothly. Passion and energy run high, kindness and compassion come easily. During this honeymoon phase, your brain even produces a rush of “in love” chemicals that make you feel high and at ease.
As the newness of the relationship wears away, unexpected challenges begin to arise. Couples find themselves in stagnant arguments that quickly go from “0 to 60.” Aspects of your partner you once found charming or attractive may now be the very things that repeatedly frustrate you. You may feel that your partner has somehow “changed.” Couples often try to address this slump by moving to a new home or city, changing jobs or even having a baby. Sadly, these external changes rarely pump new life into the relationship for long. This is where professional couples coaching comes in.
Expert couple therapy helps couples refocus on the internal. Longstanding challenges become opportunities for profound growth and self-realization. The therapist helps couples talk through sensitive issues. The therapist guides couples in recognizing power struggles and releasing old self-defeating patterns.
The First Session
For the first meeting, a joint session is usually best. (This is not required, if you feel it would be best for one member of the couple to meet individually at first.) During this initial meeting, the therapist will gather information about the couple’s history and background. Recent and longstanding issues within the relationship will be explored. Persistent arguments will be examined in detail, and individual communication styles will be assessed. Based on this information, the therapist will suggest a specific treatment plan for moving forward. Homework is often assigned, and concrete goals are set. For best results, couples are expected to work on their relationship between marriage counseling sessions.
At times, the therapist may meet with the members of the couple individually. Any information shared within individual sessions remains entirely confidential.
Couples Counseling: $120-$150 per session. Days, evenings, and weekends.
For more intensive couple therapy, DWLC offers a Couples Workshop with clinic founders, Dr. Heather and James Robbins.
Divorce Rates
Couples are often surprised to learn the following divorce statistics:
- First marriage, 50% divorce rate
- Second marriage, 67% divorce rate
- Third marriage, 74% divorce rate
What do these stats mean? They suggest that people often repeat the same mistakes again and again in relationships. Taking personal responsibility for your relationship challenges is essential. You can spend your whole life trying to train your partner not to “push your buttons,” or you can learn to let go of your buttons.
Couples coaching isn’t about “fixing” your partner. It’s about learning how both members of the relationship unintentionally contribute to conflict and dissatisfaction.
Results
Our couples counselors at DWLC are trained to be non-judgmental and unbiased about the outcome of couples counseling. For some couples, their hard work in, and between, sessions leads to a more deep and satisfying relationship than they had thought possible. Once their goals have been reached, they may simply touch base with the therapist from time to time to make sure they are staying on track.
Some relationships, however, are unhealthy from the get-go. In others, the couple grows apart over time to where they no longer share the same basic life goals, attitudes, or beliefs. In these instances, marriage counseling helps the couple go their separate ways as peacefully as possible, while learning from their recent struggles. Whether you utilize couple therapy to strengthen your relationship or to move on with your life is ultimately up to you and your partner.
Christian Counseling
In addition to offering traditional couples counseling, Dallas Whole Life also offers Christian Counseling for couples. If you are specifically interested in working with a Christian Counselor as a couple, please let us know when scheduling your first appointment.
How Do I Get Started?
If you would like to book an appointment, or have further questions, please call Dallas Whole Life Counseling at 972-755-0996, or contact us via this website.