Treating Couples: Surmounting Challenges

Couples therapy presents complexity unlike other forms of therapy, requiring clinicians to continuously expand their foundation to do the work well. The intimate context of couples therapy requires therapists to understand and address many relational difficulties, including high emotional reactivity, blame, defensiveness, and stuck repetition of problematic patterns. In addition, the persistent stress of our socio-political-cultural context continues to be a strain on couples and therapists alike. 

This course will focus on doing effective relational work in the midst of specific challenges, including polarization, working with relationships with one person as the client, and the nuances of lesbian relationships. We will also discuss integrating ketamine into couples therapy and how to effectively address the unique needs of Black couples. Each week delves deep into the topic and offers ample time for audience questions. Clinicians will gain key strategies to help advance their treatment skills and improve their effectiveness with couples. Join us!

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this activity, participants will be able to:

• Discuss the effectiveness of ketamine-assisted psychotherapy with couples.

• Implement techniques to reduce conflict and create greater mutual understanding between partners in couple therapy.

• Examine factors that impact the Black coupling process.

• Develop systemic interventions that lower the risk of inadvertently harming individual clients’ relationships.

• Explore various types of lesbian couple relationships and utilize effective techniques to resolve conflicts.

ABMS/ACGME Competencies

This course is designed to meet the following American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) / Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Educational (ACGME) competencies:

• Patient Care and Procedural Skills

• Medical Knowledge

• Interpersonal and Communication Skills

IOM Competencies

This course is designed to meet the following Institute of Medicine Core Competencies:

• Provide Patient-Centered Care

• Employ Evidence-Based Practice