Couples who are at the end of their rope or on the verge of divorce grow cynical about the possibility of change. In most cases, heartbreak and even the ability to make substantial changes are at an all-time low. Counselors frequently see couples who have needed counseling for years but have been unwilling to seek it out for the sake of their marriage. Unfortunately, even with a qualified therapist, the consequence of too little, too late might lead to a poor therapeutic outcome.
There is, however, a method to deliver high-impact solutions in a short period of time. Couples who attend an Intensive Marriage Retreat frequently turn their marriage around in a matter of days. In fact, the majority of distressed couples who are willing to fight for their marriage in the Intensive context will indeed experience significant shifts in their attitude and feelings about their partner. Intensives create a catalytic environment where emotionally corrective experiences foster rapid change and with lasting result!
While not to be seen as a quick fix for marriage, there are breakthrough results when couples do a Marriage Intensive to turn around their relationship. Why?
In traditional counseling, a couple meets once a week in a private office for one hour or less for several weeks, months, or even years. Frequently, just as one gets to the heart of the problem, they are pulled back into the stress of work, family, marital conflict, or burnout, and the problem persists until the following week, when one may get another hour of relief. Intensive Counseling, in contrast to the 50-minute hour, is designed to achieve both immediate and long-term results by providing 3-5 hours of daily counseling over a 3 to 5-day period. For couples who are unable to benefit from the weekly format, a Marriage Intensive might help to speed essential improvements. The transformational effects of these programs are often comparable to 9 months – 1 year of weekly traditional counseling with greater results.
Marriage Intensives equip couples with a safe but powerful environment. They reveal the root causes of dysfunctional repetitive patterns. Couples begin to feel hopeful and empowered again as they gain new insights, find fresh confidence, and learn new relationship skills. Partners who break out of old habits rediscover passion, harmony, and a newfound vision for what their marriage may truly become as intimate partners when they break out of previous patterns.
If you have tried traditional couple’s therapy and believe you need a more rapid approach to change, an Intensive may be the right direction. This is especially true if the marriage is at an extremely vulnerable place due to the discovery of an affair or any crucial event which has put the relationship at risk.
“We were at the end of our rope and had already attempted traditional couple’s counseling without success,” one couple said. “The Marriage Intensive was a turnaround experience that enabled us to practice new communication skills, learn to work through conflict, and reestablish trust.”
According to another couple, “Our marriage was in desperate need of a complete overhaul. The intensive approach drove us to a higher degree of self-awareness and what we were individually doing to make our marriage a negative experience than we had been previously. More significantly, the Counseling Intensive pushed us to reach a new level of closeness and competence in our relationship. Our story has changed and we are ready for the next chapter.”
INTENSIVES ARE DESIGNED FOR COUPLES WHO:
- Desire results quickly
- Are experiencing significant distress in their relationships
- Are unable to attend traditional therapy each week due to scheduling conflicts or work commitments (or have been frustrated with that approach)
- Have high conflict relationships and difficulty with communication
- Have tried traditional, weekly marriage counseling and found the results less than desirable
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