Go beyond better communication. Couples therapy can help you understand what’s actually happening between you. You may still love each other, but something in the relationship has changed. You have the same arguments, intimacy has faded, or you’ve started to feel more like roommates than partners. Maybe one of you reaches for connection while the other pulls away. Couples therapy can help you understand not only what is happening between you, but why it keeps happening.

Most couples develop ways of protecting themselves when connection feels uncertain. You might criticize because you want to be understood, withdraw because conflict feels overwhelming, or avoid saying what you need because being disappointed feels too vulnerable. Over time, these ways of protecting yourselves can become the very things keeping you apart.

My approach is relational and psychodynamic. Rather than focusing only on who said what or teaching communication techniques, we become curious about the feelings, fears, and needs underneath your familiar conflicts. What makes you reach for each other? What makes you retreat? What becomes difficult to say? Understanding these patterns creates the possibility of responding differently.

I integrate Gottman Method principles when practical tools can help couples communicate, navigate conflict, and strengthen connection. But relationships are too complex to be reduced to techniques alone. Sometimes you need to communicate differently. Other times, you need to understand why communication becomes so difficult with the person who matters most. Our work addresses both.

Ultimately, couples therapy isn’t just about having fewer arguments. It’s about creating a relationship where you can be more fully yourself while remaining deeply connected to another person.

I provide couples therapy in Seattle’s Queen Anne neighborhood. If you want more from your relationship, visit my website or schedule a free 15-minute consultation.

Adam Piddington MA, LMHC