Couples Therapy Crash Course: Top Integrative Techniques from the Gottman Method, Imago Therapy, EFT & More Leading Approaches

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Jill Squyres Groubert, PhD Related seminars and products

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Jill Squyres Groubert, PhD, a nationally respected clinical psychologist and has a counseling and coaching practice in Arvada, Colorado. Dr. Groubert earned her BA in psychology from The University of Rochester. She received her MA and PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Southern California. After serving as a project director for Western Psychological Services Publishing for three years, she spent 11 years as a staff psychologist for the Department of Veteran’s Affairs where she specialized in treating patients with serious medical illnesses and spinal cord injuries as well as participating in intern and post-doc training.

She’s served as president of the Bexar County Psychological Association and on the boards of the Texas Psychological Association, SpeakUp ReachOut: The Suicide Prevention Coalition of the Eagle River Valley, and the Suicide Prevention Coalition of Colorado. She was on the faculty of the Telemental Health Institute in San Diego where she wrote a weekly blog and provided course content. In her private practice in Arvada, Colorado, she regularly treats individuals and couples struggling with a variety of concerns including relationship problems, trauma, depression, anxiety, interpersonal issues, and health issues. In addition to her recently published book 8-Week Couples Therapy Workbook, she’s published numerous papers, articles, and book chapters. Dr. Groubert has given a popular TED talk called Why Can’t We Be Friends? with over 160,000 views. She’s a dynamic speaker who’s given numerous talks on a variety of topics. She has appeared on TV and radio programs and has been interviewed for many newspaper and magazine articles.

 

Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Dr. Jill Groubert maintains a private practice. She receives a speaking honorarium and recording royalties from PESI, Inc. Dr. Groubert receives royalties as a published author. She has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Dr. Jill Groubert has no relevant non-financial relationships.

Additional Info

Program Information

Access never expires for this product.

For a more detailed outline that includes times or durations of time, if needed, please contact cepesi@pesi.com.

Objectives

1. Identify how approaches to treating couples have transitioned from option-based to empirically validated treatments.
2. Determine what to do before therapy starts, including handling insurance, billing, and documentation.
3. Examine telehealth considerations for couples therapy.
4. Identify how to establish a therapeutic alliance with couples therapy clients.
5. Determine ways to establish goals with couples.
6. List 6 crucial interventions for working with couples.
7. Identify Gottman’s seven methods for effectively working with couples.
8. Determine how emotionally focused therapy techniques increase emotional intimacy in couples.
9. Evaluate the impact of mental health diagnoses on partners and the couples therapy process.
10. Distinguish between working with mainstream vs culturally and sexually diverse couples.
11. Identify how personal values can enhance or detract from your effectiveness as a couple’s therapist.
12. Summarize best practices in terminating psychotherapy with couples.

Outline

• Assessing your own negative and positive expectations
• Moving away from “opinion-based” to empirically validated interventions
• Techniques of individual psychotherapy that work for couples
• Historical perspective on marriage, therapy to modern relationships
• Marriage counselling as “divorce prevention”
• The shame and stigma of couples’ therapy
• Individual and societal expectations about couple’s therapy

• What to tell clients up-front
• Whether or not to give clients access to session notes
• How to appeal to your ideal client
• Best office layouts for couples sessions
• Clarifying policies in the event of divorce
• Ideal length of sessions, frequence, and best times of day
• Individual or conjoint sessions, and what to do when someone walks out
• Risks and limitations of couple’s therapy

• The basics of billing insurance and diagnosis
• Creating appropriate consent forms
• Best practices for billing codes
• Important notes on doing longer session
• Benefits of “pay out of pocket” clients
• Clarifying payment in the event couples are “unhappy” with results
• Telehealth considerations with couples

• How to create an alliance with two people and shared goals
• Addressing fears and worries about therapy
• Tips for being authentic, relatable and non-judgmental
• How to say unbiased and not take sides
• Key open-ended questions to ask
• How to make sure both partners feel heard
• Making recommendations on books, podcasts, and other resources outside of therapy
• Case study on establishing a strong therapeutic alliance

• Helping couples attain “The Big Four Goals”
• Encouraging Personal growth for both partners
• Parenting skills and improved outcomes for children
• Case study on parenting and improving outcomes for children
• Diet, exercise, and sleep solutions for improved mental and physical health
• Reducing depression, anxiety, and acute distress
• How to get couples feeling like they’re “on the same team”
• Case Study in creating and establishing goals with couples

• Techniques for Improving trust and empathy
• 6 Crucial interventions for improving communication
• 12 Healthier conflict management and coping skills
• Adaptations for managing high conflict couples
• Cast study; improving communication and managing conflict
• Keys to work with the 5 pillars of greater intimacy and increased sexual satisfaction
• Improving friendship between partners
• The Five Love Languages
• Tools for helping couples create greater happiness and life satisfaction
• Research, risks and treatment limitations
• Case study: Improving intimacy and friendship

• The 7 principles in action
• Accept influence from one another
• Solving the “solvable” and overcoming gridlocks
• Creating a sense of shared meaning and purpose
• Keys to managing money
• Research, risks and treatment limitations
• Case study: Gottman methods

• Understanding attachment styles
• Identifying negative relationship patterns that threaten secure attachment
• Sharing emotions, acceptance, and compassion with each other
• Expressing vulnerability and needs in a healthy way
• Establishing positive, constructive, and enduring secure relationship patterns
• Research, risks and treatment limitations

• 5 Basic Tenets of Imago Therapy
• Mirroring, validation, and empathy
• Internal Family Systems Therapy to identify wounded and protective internal parts
• Help clients gain clarity, confidence, and courage to connect
• Attachment-based techniques to address infidelity and more
• Research, risks and treatment limitations
• Case study: Attachment techniques

• Partners with Axis I mental disorders
• Case study
• Partners with personality Disorders
• Case study
• Military families, veterans, and first responders
• Case study
• Autism and special needs partners/kids
• Case study
• Trauma: personal, intergenerational, societal
• Case study

• Values regarding Western marriage and commitment
• Attitudes about “roles”
• Case study: Values regarding marriage, commitment, and roles
• Power and dominance patterns
• Supporting same-sex and gender diverse couples
• Case study: Supporting same-sex couples
• Understanding and supporting non-monogamous relationships
• Extended family expectations and values
• Work/family balance
• Case study: Culturally diverse couples

• Safety, consent and confidentiality
• Who is the client?
• Mandated reporting, legal considerations and state regulations
• Important notes on personal values and self-disclosure
• The role of religion and spirituality
• Case study: Self-disclosure
• Case study: Religion and spirituality

• Role of the therapist in helping couples navigate the decision to divorce
• Managing family court, and creating collaborative coparenting
• Working with stepfamily issues
• Best practices and discharge planning
• Resources for self-help or future needs
• ”Tune-ups”, crises, and requests for additional sessions after discharge
• The future of couple’s therapy
• Case study: Deciding to divorce
• Case study: Ending successful couple’s therapy

Target Audience

• Counsellors
• Therapists
• Social Workers
• Marriage and Family Therapists
• Psychiatrists
• Psychologists
• Therapists
• Physicians
• Addiction Counsellors
• Case Managers
• Other Professionals Who Work within the Mental Health Fields