Relationships can make people happy, provide them with comfort, as well as long-term partnerships. But when something goes wrong, they can also become a source of stress and frustration. When this happens, it’s not enough to talk to friends and family. In fact, it’s highly advisable to seek professional help. But how exactly does marriage counseling look in the time of social media and smartphones? Let’s take a look at the different techniques couple therapists are starting to use to help people fix their relationships.
Meditation and Couples Therapy
At the start of a relationship, we experience a wide variety of positive feelings. As our needs for intimacy, care, and sex are satisfied, we feel happy, excited, and fulfilled. However, when we start going through a rough patch, these experiences are replaced with frustration and stress. Something that can be countered through different techniques.
“Practicing yoga and meditation together can help couples build trust”
Practicing guided meditation and relaxation techniques is an excellent way to reduce negative emotions and stress. But it might also help couples having problems. A study published in Mindfulness found that mindfulness was associated with higher relationship satisfaction. Similarly, some specialists are recommending couples practice yoga together to build trust.
Telehealth for Therapeutic Immersion
In recent years, people have become used to working, studying, and even receiving healthcare services remotely. There’s also a growing demand for remote licensed therapists in Massachusetts, as well as other areas of the United States. This is not surprising considering how remote therapy allows people to get professional help without having to leave home or deal with traffic.
“Modern-day living has changed relationships drastically, therefore many couples find it very convenient to get help online”
Therapists have started to notice that people feel more open to sharing during remote therapy sessions. This may be due to the patient being able to stay in a safe and familiar environment. It’s not surprising then that it seems to be a powerful tool for marriage counseling.
Commercial Games as Couples Therapy
Video Games have been used in therapy for some time. As Michelle Colder from Johns Hopkins University explains, commercial games like Tetris and Bejeweled have been effectively used to reduce stress and depression. On the other hand, therapeutic games have help people cope with terminal conditions. Now therapists are starting to notice their potential for couples therapy.
“Games can help couples explore new ways of connecting and reconnecting so that they could evolve with a novel shared experience”
Games that foster cooperation could help strengthen a couple’s bond, something that could be improved through a strong narrative. In the game It Takes Two, for example, a couple finds themselves transformed into tiny dolls. They are forced to cooperate in order to overcome different challenges, while also talking more openly about their personal frustrations and hopes.
Relationship Assistance Apps
Couples can face a variety of challenges, from an unequal distribution of responsibilities at home to the feeling of not being understood. There’s obviously no better way to deal with these issues than seeking professional help. But if couples are feeling a bit apprehensive about this option, there are a variety of smartphone apps that might help.
“Relationship apps can provide the potential benefits of deepening honesty, communication and connection between the partners”
Merge and Kukini, for example, allow couples to easily prepare and assign tasks like going grocery shopping or taking care of the laundry. Coupleness, on the other hand, helps users keep track of their feelings and helps them discover which topics should be discussed in order to improve the relationship.
Relationships are complex. Nobody should feel hopeless just because their marriage isn’t the romantic adventure they expected. This is even more important considering the variety of alternatives couples now have access to in order to improve their relationship. We hope this short list helped you consider giving marriage counseling a chance. So, if you want to learn more about the Psynso approach to healthy relationships, don’t forget to return soon.
