Couples Counseling
Meaningful change for your relationship is possible when you find the right support near Rochester, NY. Work with a local couples counseling therapist today.
Henrietta, Victor, Pittsford, Penfield & Telehealth Options
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Couples Counseling for When Your Relationship Feels Stuck
Every relationship faces seasons of conflict, distance, and worry about what’s ahead. When arguments linger, conversations shrink to logistics, or the fear of separation weighs on your family, it can feel overwhelming. You’re not alone in this. Many couples struggle in silence before reaching out.
The encouraging news is that evidence-based couples therapy can help. At Renew Hope & Healing, you’ll find compassionate, evidence-based support that meets you and your partner where you are.
What Our Clients Are Saying
How Couples Counseling Rebuilds Connection
Couples counseling creates space for you and your partner to slow down, speak honestly, and finally feel heard. With guidance from a neutral therapist, patterns that keep your relationship stuck begin to shift, and new ways of relating to one another can take root. Through counseling, you can begin to:
- Improve communication and truly listen to each other
- Reduce conflict, criticism, and defensiveness
- Learn healthier ways to compromise
Rebuild trust and emotional safety - Increase positive moments and connection
- Gain practical strategies to use between sessions
Change doesn’t happen overnight, but it does happen when both partners are supported and given the right tools for communicating and relating to one another.
Is Couples Counseling Right for You?
If you have fears about where your relationship is headed, or if constant arguments and emotional distance are fueling sleepless nights, you may be ready for support.
Many couples struggle with co-parenting tensions, barely talking beyond logistics, leaning on others for emotional connection, or turning to unhealthy coping just to get through the day. These patterns are more common than you think.
When communication breaks down and every conversation feels heavy, couples counseling can be the next step toward understanding each other again and finding a healthier way forward together.
What If One Partner Isn’t Ready for Couples Counseling?
It’s very common for one of you to feel ready for counseling while the other hesitates. That hesitation doesn’t mean progress has to wait. Starting on your own can bring clarity, relief, and new ways of communicating that often spark curiosity and hope at home. Many partners decide to join after seeing real changes.
If your partner or spouse does not want to attend, you might try:
- Attending a few sessions on your own to set an example
- Learning and modeling skills that inspire your partner to join
- Inviting your partner to speak with your therapist and express concerns
- Asking a trusted friend to share their experience in couples counseling
- Telling your partner how you feel and why you think counseling may help
What to Expect During Your First Session
Your first couples counseling session is a chance to start talking in a confidential space that feels safe and supportive for both of you. Your therapist creates a neutral environment where each partner can be heard and respected. No taking sides here.
From the very beginning, you’ll start learning practical skills you can use right away. We often draw on evidence-based approaches, such as the Gottman Method, to guide the process. During your first appointment, you may spend time:
- Sharing concerns and your relationship story
- Identifying communication patterns that keep you stuck
- Setting meaningful goals for your relationship
- Learning simple tools to practice at home
- Creating a plan for future appointments together
How to Make the Most of Couples Counseling
Couples counseling works best when both of you show up with honesty, openness, and a real willingness to listen. Change doesn’t solely occur in the therapy room. It happens when you practice new skills between sessions and try again, even when it feels uncomfortable.
Remember, this is a team effort. You’re not against each other, you’re working together. With consistent effort, patience, and compromise, renewed connection and meaningful progress become possible and truly within reach.
Couples Counseling in Rochester, NY, and Surrounding Areas
Find compassionate, evidence-based couples counseling near you in Victor, Henrietta, Pittsford, Penfield. We also offer a telehealth option if you are unable to meet your therapist in person.
Improve Communication and Conflict Resolution
Learn to communicate clearly, listen with empathy, and resolve conflict without escalation, so disagreements become opportunities for understanding, compromise, and connection rather than cycles of criticism, defensiveness, and emotional distance.
Rebuild Trust and Intimacy
Reestablish trust and intimacy by addressing past hurts, strengthening emotional bonds, and learning new ways to show care, affection, and appreciation. Doing so can help your marriage feel more connected.
Find Support for Co-Parenting and Blended Families
Navigate co-parenting challenges and blended family dynamics with support that builds teamwork, reduces tension, and keeps children’s needs at the center, all while strengthening your partnership and shared sense of purpose.
Navigate a Separation or Transition
Find guidance during separation or major transitions, whether deciding what comes next for your relationship or learning to communicate respectfully. That way, both partners feel supported, heard, and clearer about how to move forward.
Try Faith-Integrated Couples Counseling
Faith-integrated therapy weaves spiritual values, prayer, reflection, and other meaningful practices into sessions. This therapeutic approach can deepen connection and align your relationship with the beliefs that matter most.
Use Telehealth Options
Receive couples counseling from home with secure telehealth sessions that offer flexibility, privacy, and consistent support. The flexibility telehealth offers can make it easier to prioritize your relationship, no matter how busy life feels.
Insurance & Billing Made Simple
Getting relationship support shouldn’t add more stress to your lives. With telehealth options and multiple convenient locations throughout Rochester, NY, we’re committed to making couples counseling accessible when you need it most.
We accept most major insurances, including Aetna, Excellus/Blue Cross Blue Shield, MVP, Fidelis, Child Health Plus, and UnitedHealthcare/Optum. Medicaid managed care plans (Excellus, MVP) are also accepted.
Not covered? Ask us about self-pay options and out-of-network reimbursement with a Superbill.
Email billing@renewhopeandhealing.com with any questions. We’re happy to help.
Start Today: Couples Counseling
Couples Counseling
Note: The term for “couples counseling” may vary, however, the methods of counseling are similar: Couples Therapy, Marriage Counseling, Marriage Therapy, Relationship Advice, Relationship Therapy, Marriage Problems, Christian Marriage Counseling
When is Couples Therapy right for you?
Are sleepless nights fueled by arguments and worry about your relationship’s future becoming your new normal? If conversations have dwindled to mere logistics, sidelining genuine feelings, and the fear of separation or divorce—and its painful impact on your children—constantly looms, you might be experiencing significant relationship problems. Perhaps you’re already navigating the complexities of co-parenting after separation, struggling to find common ground. It’s common to then seek emotional support outside the partnership, from co-workers or friends, or even turn to unhealthy coping mechanisms like increased alcohol use or excessive work hours to avoid escalating home conflict. When every interaction feels like an argument, true communication in your relationship has broken down, compromise is a distant memory, and the question “How can I be a good partner?” feels forgotten, please know you are not isolated in these struggles. Many individuals and couples face these painful marriage challenges in silence, but understanding these patterns is the first step toward healing and finding relationship support..
There is good news
There are evidence-based practices for couples therapy, proven to show effective results for struggling relationships. These practices focus primarily on communication skills, realistic compromise, ratios of positive to negative interactions, breaking down criticism, defensiveness, and stonewalling.
With therapy, couples can expect to learn basic and advanced communication skills. They can expect to have skills to put into practice after the first session. At the next session, you come back and work on any barriers that arose when trying to use these skills. Whether married or dating, you will get to know important details about each other. You will be in a neutral atmosphere, where we will address issues you may have with effective communication. All these efforts will lead to better understanding, more successful interactions, and a renewal of the energy in your relationship. Frequently, during marriage therapy and couples therapy, we uncover core issues that have caused a lack of trust and distance. You can address these issues head-on with a third party in the room and start healing these hurts. When appropriate, personality tests and/or reading materials are suggested as homework to expedite the process.
The Gottman Institute method is one of the many interventions used by marriage and family therapists, including many at Renew Hope and Healing. The Gottman Institute has a research-based approach to strengthening relationships. It is responsible for researching and developing this information for couples. See References at the bottom of this page.1
What if I’m ready for couples therapy, but my partner/spouse refuses to come in?
Unfortunately, this is a common scenario. It is always preferable for both partners/spouses to attend the first session. However, I have had situations where one partner/spouse attends a few sessions and then the other comes out of curiosity or after seeing some changes in the person attending therapy. If you are having trouble with your partner/spouse not wanting to attend, we sometimes suggest that you have them call your therapist so any reservations or concerns that they have can be addressed. Another approach is to suggest to your partner/spouse that they speak with someone you know who has been to couples counseling and is willing to share their experience. A more assertive way is to tell your partner/spouse how you feel, perhaps: “I really have doubts about our relationship, and I need you to attend counseling with me to get help.” This last idea is reserved for extremely damaged relationships.
So this all sounds good, but will it work for my relationship?
While a successful outcome isn’t universally guaranteed, engaging in couples therapy provides a structured environment where some partners discover that even a temporary separation can be a valid, constructive step for their relationship’s future. Critically, couples who bypass professional marriage counseling or relationship counseling significantly reduce their chances of acquiring vital effective communication skills and mastering essential compromising behaviors needed to navigate disagreements. Time and again, couples express profound relief, sharing experiences like, “Thankfully, we attended counseling…we can finally talk through something without it ending in an argument, and we solve problems quicker.” The core of couples therapy is to intentionally moderate discussions, creating a safe space where each individual can truly hear their partner and, just as importantly, feel genuinely heard – an indispensable skill for embarking on the healing process and fostering relationship repair.
What Renew Hope and Healing has to offer
- We have convenient hours for those who need appointments after school, work, or extra-curricular activities.
- We accept most insurances. See here for more information about payment/insurance. We will work with people who have a financial hardship.
- We have offices in Victor, Henrietta, Pittsford, and Penfield, NY. We also provide telehealth.
- Our licensed therapists have years of experience helping struggling couples
Next steps
Start to read: Reconcilable Differences, Second Edition: Rebuild Your Relationship by Rediscovering the Partner You Love–without Losing Yourself Christensen, Phd, Andrew.2
Call us at 585-398-8835 or Schedule An Appointment online
Renew Hope and Healing
Locations in Victor, Henrietta, Pittsford and Penfield.
Also servicing surrounding areas such as: Canandaigua, Farmington, Clifton Springs, Geneva, Shortsville, Macedon, Palmyra, Perinton, Fairport, and Bloomfield.
REFERENCES
1 www.gottman.com Co-founded by Drs. John and Julie Schwartz Gottman, the Gottman Institute, help couples directly and provide state-of-the-art training to mental health professionals and other health care providers. The Gottman Institute applies leading-edge research on marriage in practical, down-to-earth therapy and trains therapists committed to helping couples. No other approach to couples education and therapy has relied on such intensive, detailed, and long-term scientific study of why marriages succeed or fail.
2 Andrew Christensen, PhD, Reconcilable Differences, Second Edition: Rebuild Your Relationship by Rediscovering the Partner You Love–without Losing Yourself. Andrew Christensen, PHD, is Professor of Psychology at the University of California, Los Angeles. Dr. Christensen has spent more than 30 years studying intimate relationships and working with couples in therapy. He has conducted extensive research on the impact of couples therapy, including the approach on which this book is based, which he developed with the late Neil S. Jacobson. Dr. Christensen and his wife, who live in Los Angeles, have two grown children.