Also known as Marathon Couples Counseling
Intensive Couples Therapy
A short-term, concentrated intervention to resolve or stabilize a major crisis that seriously threatens your relationship — when you need immediate help.
A concentrated response to crisis
Because of its urgency and immediacy, we skip an in-depth relationship assessment and the teaching of many basic communication techniques presented during normal couples counseling. Instead, I conduct an in-depth assessment of the crisis you are now facing — the one endangering your relationship.
Some crisis issues may not be fully resolved within the short-term limits of marathon therapy. With that in mind, I ask you to defer any decision on the relationship for at least 30 days, and to schedule follow-up with a skilled therapist to continue regular couples counseling afterward.
The format
Intensive Couples Therapy generally involves 2–5 days of in-depth, concentrated counseling for 6–8 hours a day, excluding an hour for lunch. Breaks are unscheduled and taken as needed. During lunch you’ll be asked to sit quietly, reflect, and focus on the process you are undergoing.
How each session is designed
- 01
I evaluate the nature and severity of the problem to predict what might occur and be lost if the crisis cannot be stabilized.
- 02
I assess how much time will be required to stabilize the crisis.
- 03
I secure your commitment to work within the agreed time until the crisis is stabilized.
- 04
I help you focus on your needs so we can establish therapeutic goals to guide the treatment plan.
A clear and precise benefit
It allows you both to ask questions, and to set new boundaries, expectations and conditions for moving forward.
The risks to understand
This work is powerful because it is honest. That honesty carries real emotional weight, and you should know what to expect before you begin.
- The intensity will cause you both to recall unpleasant and possibly traumatic events experienced individually, before or during your relationship.
- The process moves quickly to the center of the crisis, surfacing avoided conversations and releasing intense anger, guilt, sadness, anxiety, loneliness and helplessness.
- Emotional reactivity may magnify when secrets, deceptions and betrayals are disclosed, and one party might abandon the process despite the therapist’s best efforts to contain it.
When marathon counseling is inadvisable
For the safety and success of the process, Intensive Couples Therapy is not recommended if you or both of you have:
- A history of violence or violent acting-out, including personal assaults, destruction of property, or violent threats
- An active alcohol or drug addiction from either party’s perspective
- An untreated major mental illness such as Schizophrenia, Major Depressive Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, or PTSD
- A current, active extra-marital affair that one partner is unwilling to end or disclose
- Current suicidal or homicidal thoughts, or a history of inflicting serious physical harm on yourself or another
A proven, research-based method
Sherwood Couples Counseling has delivered marriage counseling in San Antonio, Texas since 1985. We use Gottman Method Couples Therapy — a proven, research-based approach to communication and conflict resolution that helps couples break through the barriers in their relationship to a higher level of understanding, affection and intimacy.
Thanks to private video sessions from the comfort of your own home, we can deliver counseling, coaching and skill training anywhere. When you finish, I’ll present a comprehensive written report with recommendations tailored to you and your partner, along with the option to continue with us or be referred to another provider.
Need immediate help?
Call us for a free assessment today and schedule a preliminary interview to see whether Intensive Couples Therapy is right for you.
Schedule a Preliminary Interview