There is a Spanish Proverb, “Where there is love, there is pain.” Many of us have deep desires to have more fulfilling, meaningful relationships with other people. We often wish for loving relationships with family members, friends, and romantic partners. When we feel lack, conflict, or distance in our relationships, we often feel intense pain, sadness, and isolation. In fact, many people who decide to come into therapy often want to discuss problems and concerns related to their relationships with others.
Individual therapy for relationship problems
At Portland Psychotherapy, we provide relationship counseling to those who are experiencing pain in this very important part of their lives. We provide counseling to individuals who have difficulties with their family members, friends, and romantic partners. We also offer counseling to those seeking skills that helps them to connect with others in deeper, more satisfying ways. Consistent with our commitment to inclusivity and diversity, at Portland Psychotherapy, we provide a safe space to discuss diverse types of relationships, including polyamorous relationships, same-sex romantic relationships, the diverse spectrum of friendship types, and other relationship types. Our focus is on helping you become the partner, friend, or family member you truly desire to be.
Resources and Books on Relationships
Our work on relationships is strongly influence by a type of therapy called Functional Analytic Psychotherapy (FAP). Also, we have gathered together some relationship-oriented books and resources in the Portland area that we recommend.
Couples therapy
Our couples therapy is guided by an evidence-based therapy approach called Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT). Every relationship experiences distress, especially when that relationship is important to us and we don’t want to lose that person. EFT for couples explores the dynamics and patterns in relationships that contribute to that distress with the goal of changing problematic cycles. After identifying the negative patterns that the couple typically finds themselves in, an EFT therapist helps explore the underlying thoughts and feelings that impact the relationship and guides the couple in expressing those unsaid thoughts and feelings to their partner. Overall, the goal of EFT is to help couples feel safer and more connected through helping couples have the difficult conversations that can transform their relationship into something more satisfying and meaningful.
EFT has been studied in numerous clinical trials and has been demonstrated to reduce couples’ distress in 70%-90% of cases.
If you’re having problems in your relationships and need some help, we want you to know that there are things you can do. Here are some ideas for next steps:
- To make an appointment with one of our counselors, call 503-281-4852 and leave a confidential message. Someone will call you back shortly.
- To learn more about how couples counseling works, click here.
- To read our blog posts about enhancing relationships, click here.
- If you are interested in learning more about who our current couples counselors are, click here.