FAQs about Couples and Marriage Intensives in Tampa

The Tampa Bay Area is a great place for couples to live -- there are plenty of date options, and lots of opportunities to find the right neighborhood, great friends, a local gym, place to worship, everything you might need! 

There are also plenty of therapists, counselors, coaches, and clergy to help you and your partner with your relationship. There are so many options, that it might be confusing to know which one is the right fit!  You’ve found a couple that seem nice enough, but you probably have a ton of questions. That’s totally normal!  

So, let’s talk through a few of the most common questions couples have when they are looking for couples counseling and marriage intensives in the Tampa Bay Area:

1. Is there hope for our relationship? Is it too late? It’s amazing how much change and healing can come when couples are open to doing the work and taking time to focus on improving their relationship.  And the benefit of working in an intensive format is that big change can happen quickly, instead of dragging out over weeks and months. The intensive can be like CPR for the relationship, bringing new life!

2. We’re not sure that our relationship is “that bad”. Sure, there are things that we struggle with, but doesn’t every couple??  How would an intensive help us?? You’re absolutely right -- every couple has their unique challenges!  And every relationship has its wounds and losing strategies. When you take the time to look at these things before they become major problems, you can prevent a lot of hurt down the road.  Recently, I hurt my finger. It was just a little cut, so I didn’t pay a lot of attention to it.  But, before I knew it, it was infected, tender, and icky! At that point, it took a lot more time and energy for it to heal that if I had taken care of it from the get-go.  Our relationships are similar. Don’t let your relational wounds fester and become bigger problems!

3. We’ve tried couples counseling before and it didn’t work. How is this different?? Sometimes, couples therapy focuses more on the “weed” of the problem than on the “root”. Just like in your yard, the weeds are important to take care of, but it’s most effective to address them by the root.  The format of this intensive does that, which leads to much deeper connection and lasting change. Also, doing this work in an intensive format, with follow up support, allows for focused energy towards making changes in the relationship instead of spinning your wheels for weeks on end.

4. Wow, that’s a lot of money! Is it worth it? You’re right - this is definitely an investment in your relationship!  Let’s put it in context - What would be the outlay of your time, energy, money, trying to find a day + time that would work weekly for you, your partner, babysitters, kids activities, work obligations, etc, etc, etc for three months? It’s exhausting just thinking about it! (And doesn’t necessarily set you up for success in improving your relationship!). Think about the things in your life that you’ve invested in -- your education, your car, your job, the latest iPhone.  Frankly, we value the things that we invest in. Should your relationship be any different?? (And P.S. -- have you seen the retainer required by divorce attorneys lately? This intensive is much less than that!)

My name is Yolanda Harper I hope this helps to give a better idea of some of the questions you can ask during a free consultation for a couples intensive in Tampa.  If you have additional questions, or would like these specific questions answered, feel free to call our office at (813) 434-3639 to schedule a free 15 minute phone consultation. I’d be happy to hear about what is happening and help direct you to the right person. If you are looking for help with your relationship, you can read more about how I can help here.