Couples counselling
You still care. You have just run out of ways to reach each other.
The distance has grown. The same conversations keep ending the same way. You are not sure when things shifted or how you got here. For intercultural and bicultural couples, there is often an added layer. Two worlds, two sets of expectations, and no map for how to hold both. Couples counselling is where that work can begin.
Book a free consultation
What couples counselling is
Not a last resort. Not about deciding who is right.
Couples counselling is a structured process in which two people work with a registered mental health professional to understand the patterns in their relationship, improve how they communicate and build a stronger foundation going forward.
It is not about relitigating old arguments. It is not about the therapist taking sides. And it is not reserved for relationships that are on the verge of ending. People come to couples counselling at all different points. Some in the middle of conflict, others when things feel quietly distant, and others simply because they want to invest in what they have before problems take root.
For intercultural and bicultural couples, this practice has a particular understanding of the additional layer of navigating two worlds, two sets of family expectations and two different ways of understanding what a relationship is supposed to look like. That context is not a complication. It is part of the work.
Sessions are available in person in Calgary and virtually across Alberta and Nova Scotia.
The approach
Two evidence-based methods. One clear focus.
Couples counselling at this practice draws on two research-backed approaches. Which one is used, or how they are combined, depends on what you and your partner bring into the session.
Method one
The Gottman Method
Grounded in decades of research on what makes relationships function well over time, the Gottman Method identifies the specific patterns that predict relationship difficulty and addresses them directly and practically.
Building friendship and trust
Understanding each other more deeply and rebuilding the connection that brought you together.
Managing conflict constructively
Learning to navigate disagreement in ways that do not cause lasting damage to the relationship.
Creating shared meaning
Building a relationship where both partners feel genuinely seen, valued and connected.
Method two
Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)
EFT works at the level of emotion and attachment. It helps couples understand the deeper emotional needs and fears that drive their patterns and restructures the bond between them so both partners feel safe and secure.
Understanding the cycle
Identifying the negative patterns you keep getting stuck in and what is actually driving them beneath the surface.
Accessing deeper emotions
Moving past the arguments to the underlying needs: the fear, the longing, the unspoken hurt that are fuelling the distance.
Rebuilding secure connection
Creating new emotional experiences together that strengthen the bond and make the relationship a source of safety again.
What we work on
If any of this sounds familiar, you are in the right place.
These are some of the patterns couples commonly bring into the session. You do not have to be in crisis to begin.
Communication breakdown
Conversations that go in circles, escalate quickly or never reach resolution no matter how many times you try.
Emotional distance
Feeling like housemates rather than partners. A creeping disconnection that neither of you knows quite how to bridge.
Trust and repair
Working through a breach of trust, whether a specific event or a pattern of behaviour that has eroded the foundation over time.
Intercultural and bicultural tension
Navigating two different cultural frameworks for communication, family, gender roles and what a relationship is supposed to look like.
Intimacy and connection
Rebuilding physical and emotional closeness when life, stress or unresolved conflict has pushed you apart.
Life transitions together
A move, a loss, immigration, a new chapter. Major changes that have put pressure on how you function as a couple.
Session rates
Investing in your relationship is not a luxury.
Getting support should not depend on whether you can afford it. A sliding scale is available for those who qualify.
Couples counselling
Official receipt provided for extended health reimbursement
Free consultation
No commitment required. A chance for both of you to ask questions and see if working together feels right.
Direct billing and insurance
Direct billing is available for Alberta Blue Cross, Medavie and Greenshield. For all other insurance providers, an official receipt is provided for you to submit directly for reimbursement. It is your responsibility to confirm coverage details, including session limits and reimbursement rates, with your insurance provider before booking.