Couples Marathon Therapy
The goal of a couples intensive is nothing short of transformation, whether you are rebuilding from a relationship injury or shifting negative patterns of relating, you can expect your relationship trajectory to be more positive, hopeful and productive.
What is Marathon Couples Therapy?
A Couples Marathon session is a highly effective, two-day private counseling session addressing relationship injuries, shifting negative patterns into supportive communication, and creating more goodwill and trust between you. In this more intensive format, in two days we can make progress that would normally take months of weekly therapy sessions. Research by Boegner and Zielenbach Coenen (1984) has shown that Marathon therapy for couples has the capacity to create more positive change than spreading out the same number of hours into weekly sessions.
The goal of a couples intensive is nothing short of transformation, whether you are rebuilding from a relationship injury or shifting negative patterns of relating, you can expect your relationship trajectory to be more positive, hopeful and productive after the Marathon session. This condensed time allows you and your partner to devote your full attention in rebuilding your relationship, powerfully disrupting patterns that have fueled disconnection, in order to strengthen the bond between the two of you.
Marathon sessions typically last 12-18 hours over the course of two or three days (around 6 hours per day). Days are broken up into a morning and afternoon session, with time for lunch. Many couples decide to stay a few nights in Bellingham and turn our Marathon days into a couples retreat with evening rest and local exploration/sight-seeing. The city of Bellingham, WA is a beautiful community with much to see and do. If you are traveling from out of town I can give you suggestions to explore the area. I offer sessions in-person in my Bellingham, WA office, or through a virtual telehealth option.
What To Expect
If you are interested in beginning the process, I offer free 15-minute consultations for you to ask me any questions and to determine if I would be a good fit for you and your partner. If you decide to move forward I can then offer you upcoming two or three-day slots of availability.
Before our Marathon session, I send each member of the couple a detailed intake questionnaire where you will answer questions on the current state of your relationship and your hopes and intentions for our time together. It is my goal to use this information as a guidepost to honor your goals. If each member of the couple has different intentions or goals, I honor each individual’s hopes and dreams as we work together.
Intensive/Marathon: Intensives are billed hourly with an average of 6-7 hours of therapy per day. The cost range for an intensive is generally ($2160 (two 6-hour days) to $2,520 (two 7-hour days)
Retainer for intensive: $1,000
I do not bill insurance for couples counseling. Insurance companies require that an individual person have a diagnosis in order to reimburse for therapy services. Because our work focuses on your relationship and improving the interactions between the two of you, couples work is not covered by medical insurance. Some Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) are flexible and allow account holders to use funds without an individual diagnosis. If you would like a receipt in order to use your HSA, I can provide you with a receipt or our sessions and total charges.
After our counseling intensive, I will write a summary for you of the work that we accomplished. The summary will contain all of the skills and concepts that were taught as well as suggestions and recommendations tailored to each of you. This summary can serve as a reference as you continue the growth that you started together.
Once you complete your marathon session, I am dedicated to supporting you to sustain your gains from your marathon. Some couples find that their marathon session was enough to move them where they wanted to be and that they do not not need further sessions. Other couples prefer that I continue to see them for follow up sessions (generally 1-4 hours) on a short-term basis to help them sustain their positive momentum. I can meet with couples either in person or online. These follow-up visits can be tailored to your specific needs and situation.
Ready to Get Started?
Set up a free consultation to find out if we are a good fit.
What counts in making a happy marriage is not so much how compatible you are but how you deal with incompatibility.
~Leo Tolstoy