Couples Counseling & Therapy in the Bay Area

In-Person & Online Evidence-Based Cognitive Behavioral Couples Therapy

Working Together As A Couple

Do you feel like you and your partner have the same arguments over and over? Do you feel stuck, hopeless, and alone in your relationship? Is it difficult for you to get your needs met? Does it feel like you give more than you get in return? Do you struggle to communicate your needs and feelings to your partner? If so, Then couples therapy can help.

By the time partners seek out couples counseling and therapy, they often feel so overwhelmed that they believe their problems are impossible to manage or repair. Couples get stuck in lose/lose communication when they focus on the immediate conflict rather than their underlying needs. Often their conflicts grow out of core beliefs or main themes in relationships, which we call “schemas.” You may be totally unaware of your schemas, but they shape not only your thoughts, actions, and life choices but also your relationships. Once we identify these themes or schemas in your relationship, your problems don’t seem so large. We can help you recognize and break these painful patterns in your relationship and learn new skills to resolve conflict and build intimacy.

These challenges stymie all types of couples—same-sex and heterosexual as well as couples where one partner (or both) is transgendered. We have ample experience working with a wide variety of couples, and are dedicated to helping you rebuild and maintain a healthy relationship.

At the Bay Area CBT Center, we help you overcome the obstacles that prevent you from having the relationship you desire. Our approach to couples therapy is active and directive and offers practical skills for couples such as Nonviolent Communication, mindfulness, polyvagal regulation, and assertiveness training. We integrate interventions from Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFT), IMAGO Couples Therapy, Gottman Couples Therapy, Polyvagal Theory, Attachment Theory, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, and Schema Therapy. For your convenience, we offer online cognitive behavioral couples therapy through video or phone and have offices in San Francisco and Oakland.

How To Begin
What We Offer

How to begin couples counseling and therapy.

Book a free 15 minute consultation

The first step to initiating treatment is to book a free 15-minute consultation call with our client care coordinator to get matched with a therapist who meets your specific needs. In this consultation session, our client care coordinator will assess your concerns and schedule you with a therapist that is the best fit for your particular situation.

The first session will involve your couples therapist talking with each of you individually and together. Your couples therapist will discuss your concerns, evaluate your needs, and give you a good sense of what maintains your current problems. Together with you, your couples therapist, will explore therapeutic approaches that may help with the challenges you face. In the first few sessions, your couples therapist will continually refine the assessment of your needs and your specific goals for therapy.

At The Bay Area CBT Center, we believe that it is imperative to find a couples therapist who is a good fit for both partners and who possesses qualities such as personality style, therapeutic stance, and values that resonate with you both. Having an authentic and genuine connection with your couples therapist is essential.

During the course of your couples therapy, your therapist will continue to check in with each of you regarding your goals and monitor your progress. You may also choose to engage in additional activities or exercises in between sessions. Couples who are willing to practice new behaviors outside of therapy and engage in homework exercises in between therapy sessions are more likely to show significant improvement in therapy. Cognitive behavioral couples therapy sessions can be conducted via teletherapy online or in person at our Oakland office or San Francisco office locations. Online couples counseling and in-person couples therapy sessions are typically one hour long.

We are here to help with the challenges you face.

As part of couples therapy, we offer a variety of self-awareness and skill-building opportunities. Although the list below is not exhaustive, it will give you an idea of the many ways we can help you. Depending on your needs and desires, any one or combination of these can be incorporated into your therapy: