Being in a relationship is the most challenging part of being alive. We struggle to connect and at the same time, we want the freedom to grow. We want independence and we want security. We want to be seen and we want to be left alone. We want to be desired and we want to desire. We want things on our own terms and we project our frustrations onto our partner. Without a lover, we may feel lonely but with a partner who doesn’t understand us, we can feel stifled. We can struggle throughout our lifetime to find the right balance, to keep things exciting, to keep love alive.
Getting through these feelings can be tough. As a therapist, I work with couples who have been through a variety of real-life challenges – infidelity, chronic illness, loss, and financial stresses, all of which trigger intense emotions. In almost every situation the couple struggles with their feelings, both individually and together. This is where Imago Relationship Therapy can be such an invaluable resource.
What is Imago Relationship Therapy?
Most people wonder if therapy can really help. There are many types of counseling, and Imago is just one way to help couples understand their relationship and learn ways to communicate that can change the way they deal with conflict. Imago therapy is a tool that we use as therapists to help guide our clients to reimagine themselves, their feelings, their partners, and their relationships. It can help you to examine the patterns you bring into your relationship and help break down harmful patterns and rebuild new connections with yourself and your partner(s).
Challenges in Sex and Relationship Therapy
I have developed a method for integrating sex and couples therapy to help heal conflicts and re-eroticize relationships. Under the old model, couples would see their emotional and mental relationships improve, but feel frustrated when their sex lives didn’t get better. At the same time, couples in sex therapy reinvigorate their sex lives only to be discouraged months later when they find themselves distant and disconnected.
The integrative sex and relationship therapy model means your mental and emotional lives interweave with your sexuality. However, getting through the feelings that this can bring up is never easy.
A myriad of myths, misconceptions, and notions around emotions and sex block even a discussion around your feelings about sex. It helps to have a therapist who is experienced and sensitive to both sexuality and emotional issues in couples.
Imago and Integrative Therapy
Because Imago Relationship Therapy is designed to help people recognize emotional patterns, it can help reframe your ideas about sex and feelings. Combining Integrative therapy with the techniques of Imago can give you new ways to connect with your partner, help you to get out of your old patterns, and find new ways to look at desire and eroticism.
If you’re interested in therapy, try an Intensive, either in person or online., For more info go to https://www.facebook.com/DrTammyNelson/videos/269953074789136/
If you’re a therapist and want to learn more about integrating sex and couples therapy with Imago for people recovering from Infidelity, check out my at-home eLearn, Recovery from Affairs: Sexual Recovery from Affairs Using Imago Relationship Therapy.
Better yet, learn in a live virtual event at the Integrative Sex Therapy Institute. Mark your calendars for upcoming events.
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