The Couples Therapy Companion

Book excerpt: Learn to look at marriage and couples counseling through the lens of Rational Emotive Couples Therapy. Dr. Russell Grieger walks the reader through the RECT process and includes numerous exercises that are appropriate for clinicians to use with their clients, for those couples who are in therapy and need a little extra help, and for couples working to improve their relationship on their own. Along with explaining the process of Rational Emotive Couples Therapy, Dr. Grieger makes the distinction between relationship difficulties, which are small disagreements and dissatisfactions, and relationship disturbances, which occur when a couple becomes emotionally distressed and entrenched in negativity. He walks readers through the couple diagnosis and presents eight powerful strategies for helping resolve both couple difficulties and disturbances to find relationship harmony. Dr. Grieger addresses such issues as ridding hurt, anger, fear, and insecurity, enhancing closeness and intimacy, win-win conflict resolution, and building couple commitment and connection. Replete with exercises that empower couples to take action and solve their problems, The Couples Therapy Companion also helps readers to sustain the positive momentum learned in therapy in everyday life.