Couples Counselling in Edmonton & Online
Most couples don’t come to therapy because they’ve stopped loving each other. They come because they can’t feel it anymore. I help partners find their way back to that feeling, using Transformative Couples Therapy®.
GRAB YOUR PARTNERS HAND
Maybe you’re worried I’ll take sides, or that your partner will say something you’re not ready to hear. Those fears make sense. My job is to make the room safe enough for both of you, so each person feels understood and neither feels blamed.
After the honeymoon phase, most relationships settle into patterns: the same argument on repeat, one partner pursuing while the other pulls away, small hurts that pile up. Together we’ll name those patterns, find what’s underneath them, and change them.
It’s normal to feel nervous about couples therapy
MY APPROACH · TRANSFORMATIVE COUPLES THERAPY®
Love isn’t only the goal. It’s the medicine.
Slow down
From reactivity to presence
When a familiar fight starts, we pause it. Together we notice what’s happening in each of you, including the body cues like a tight chest or the urge to shut down, before the old pattern takes over.
Transformative Couples Therapy® (TCT) was developed by Dr. David Mars and grows out of AEDP, attachment research and affective neuroscience. Its central idea is simple and hopeful: the felt experience of love, in your body and in the room, is itself a healing force. Rather than only talking about the relationship, we help you experience connection as it happens.
Go underneath
From blame to what’s really there
Behind criticism or withdrawal there’s usually fear, longing or an old hurt. TCT gently reaches the trauma and shame that keep partners guarded, so they no longer run the relationship.
Feel it together
From disconnection to felt love
When one partner can finally say what’s true and the other can really take it in, something shifts. We stay with that moment and let it land, building a secure bond you can both feel.
INSIDE A SESSION
One moment, slowed down
An illustration of how a familiar argument can unfold differently in the room. Not a real client.
THE USUAL
“You’re on your phone again.” Partner B goes quiet. Partner A gets louder. Both of them have had this fight a hundred times.
PAUSE
I ask them both to stop and notice. Partner B feels their chest go numb. Partner A feels a knot in their stomach.
UNDERNEATH
Partner A’s knot is loneliness: “I miss you.” Partner B’s numbness is an old habit of disappearing when someone is upset with them.
RECEIVED
Partner B turns toward A and says, “I didn’t know you felt that alone.” We slow down and let them both feel what it’s like to be met.
TOOLS FROM TCT
More than talking about it
TCT gives us ways to work with experience directly, not just discuss it. I use these only when you’re both ready, and always at a pace that feels safe.
Tuning in to the body
We track the signals your body gives off during conflict and closeness, so you can catch the moment you start to shut down or flare up, and choose differently.
Healing portrayals
Sometimes an old wound needs a new ending. In a portrayal, we imagine or gently enact a past moment differently: the reunion, the rescue or the words that never came. Your partner can be part of it.
Letting the good land
When a moment of real connection happens, we don’t rush past it. We stay with it and reflect on it, so it becomes something your relationship can return to.
Communication breakdowns
Recurring conflict
Infidelity & rebuilding trust
Emotional distance
Intimacy & sexual connection
Triggers in the relationship
What couples work on with me
Rescuing & dependency patterns
Love addiction
Differentiation
Pre-marriage & big decisions
Separation & endings
Blended families
Getting the most from therapy
1. Get clear on the relationship you want to build.
2. Work on your own roadblocks and become the partner you want to be.
3. Get curious about your partner’s roadblocks, and respect them.
4. Treat conflict as a doorway to growth, not a threat.
5. Check in on progress together and choose your next step.
SESSIONS & FEES
In person in Edmonton, or online together
Couples sessions take place at my Edmonton office at 10548 115 St NW, or by secure video for couples across Alberta and British Columbia, even if you’re joining from different places.
Many extended health plans cover couples counselling with a Master Therapeutic Counsellor. Sliding-scale spots are available.
Relationship
50-minute session
[$ 195]
Relationship
80-minute session
[$ 255]
Recommended for couples
In couples counselling I’m working with two people, two histories and the relationship between you, all at once. Each session takes careful attention to both partners so neither of you feels left out or unheard. Couples work also draws on specialized training, like Transformative Couples Therapy®, and requires more time between sessions to prepare and track both perspectives. The fee reflects that added depth, and it covers support for both of you in a single session.
Couples counselling questions
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TCT is an experiential, attachment-based model developed by Dr. David Mars. It focuses on helping partners feel connection in the moment, working with emotion, the body and past hurts rather than only problem-solving.
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No. My job is to make sure both of you feel heard and understood. I’ll sometimes slow one person down so the other can be heard, and then switch.
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You can start on your own. Individual sessions focused on the relationship can still shift the pattern, and many partners join later.
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Many couples arrive feeling that way. Therapy can help you reconnect or, if that’s not the path, help you separate with more clarity and less harm. You’ll never know what relationship you’re in until you are brave enough to show up in it.
Other ways I can help
Take a leap of faith, together.
Book a free 15-minute consultation with Craig. One of you can call, or both.