Couples Counselling Edmonton
In person and online couples therapy that works.
Here at Loving Choices, we support all relationship types. Whether you’re struggling in your marriage, you’re looking to build a strong foundation for a new relationship, or you simply don’t know how to talk to each other after a traumatic break or breach of trust, learning to make Loving Choices can help your relationship thrive.
Couples Counselling Edmonton
In person and online couples therapy that works.
Here at Loving Choices, we support all relationship types. Whether you’re struggling in your marriage, you’re looking to build a strong foundation for a new relationship, or you simply don’t know how to talk to each other after a traumatic break or breach of trust, learning to make Loving Choices can help your relationship thrive.
Are you always fighting with your partner?
Do you feel like all you and your partner do is fight? If it seems like you can’t stop fighting and there’s no way to have a conversation without it turning volatile, there is a better way. Constantly fighting with your partner can be an excruciatingly painful experience, leaving you emotionally exhausted and creating a significant rift in your relationship. Whether you and your partner engage in explosive arguments regularly or find yourselves having minor disagreements multiple times a day, the relentless conflict saps your energy and leaves you feeling completely disconnected from or resentful of your relationship. Your options don’t have to be constant fighting or silence, whether you’re new into your relationship or have been together for years, there’s still time to learn how to communicate in a healthy and loving way.
Couples therapy provides tools to:
- Repair the damage caused by persistent fighting.
- Guide you towards healthier conflict resolution.
- Learn to engage in constructive dialogue and focusing on working together
- Create opportunities for growth and understanding, ultimately strengthening your relationship.
Do you feel like your partner just doesn’t understand you?
Poor communication with your partner can leave you feeling deeply misunderstood and isolated. Do your words often get misconstrued? Does it seem like you’re always talking in circles, never reaching an understanding or compromise? This sense of frustration and disconnect can be incredibly taxing on a relationship, making you feel like your voice is lost and your perspective overlooked. The inability to speak openly and grasp each other’s viewpoints can lead to feelings of resentment and emotional distance, creating a barrier that seems impossible to overcome. You might find yourself second-guessing your thoughts and emotions, feeling trapped in a cycle of miscommunication that only intensifies with time. The constant struggle to be heard and understood can erode the foundation of trust and intimacy that a healthy relationship depends on.
Couples Counselling can help you:
- Develop better communication skills,
- Foster mutual understanding
- Guide you towards more effective and empathetic ways of connecting.
- Bridge the communication gap, ensuring that both partners feel valued, heard, and understood.
Are you finding intimacy problems in your relationship?
Intimacy issues can cast a long shadow over a relationship, leading to feelings of disconnection and loneliness. Whether it’s a lack of physical closeness or emotional intimacy, these problems can create a significant strain. Physical intimacy, encompassing everything from affectionate touch to sexual connection, is crucial for many relationships. Equally important is emotional intimacy, the deep sense of understanding, trust, and closeness that binds partners together. When either or both of these aspects are lacking, it can lead to frustration, insecurity, and relational disconnect. Understanding your partner’s needs and making an effort to connect with them on both levels is vital for maintaining a healthy relationship.
Couples intimacy counselling can be instrumental in:
- Addressing intimacy issues in a safe space to explore and resolve barriers.
- Use guided communication and exercises to help you and your partner rebuild and strengthen your bond
- Fostering a deeper connection and ensuring that everyone feels valued, loved, and understood.
Do you struggle to have difficult conversations with your partner?
Having hard conversations with your partner can be incredibly challenging, often filled with tension and the fear of conflict. Whether hard conversations are avoided or they frequently devolve into heated arguments, addressing sensitive topics can feel daunting and unproductive. The inability to have these critical conversations can lead to unresolved issues and growing resentment, further straining the relationship. This can create a toxic cycle where problems are never fully addressed, and emotional distance grows. It can feel like walking on eggshells, constantly fearing that bringing up important matters will only result in more pain and conflict. Seeking couples counselling can provide a safe and structured environment to tackle these difficult conversations in a healthy and constructive manner. A skilled therapist can facilitate open dialogue, ensuring both partners feel heard and understood, and guide you towards finding mutual understanding and resolution. It’s time to make these hard conversations an opportunity for growth and deeper connection.
Through Couples Counselling, you can:
- Learn effective communication strategies
- Develop empathy for each other’s perspectives
- Build a stronger, more resilient relationship
Do you struggle to be vulnerable with your partner?
Not being vulnerable with your partner and closing yourself off can lead to significant issues in a relationship. Vulnerability is the cornerstone of emotional intimacy, allowing both partners to share their deepest fears, desires, and feelings. When you withhold this openness, it can create a barrier that prevents genuine connection and understanding. Over time, this emotional distance can foster feelings of loneliness, resentment, and insecurity. Partners may begin to feel that they don’t truly know each other and trust can erode. Couples Counselling can address these challenges. By fostering a space of mutual trust and openness, you can begin to dismantle the walls that have been built up, paving the way for a stronger and more resilient relationship.
Couples counselling can help you:
- Creating a safe and supportive environment where you can truly be vulnerable.
- Guide you in developing the courage to be open and honest, teaching you how to share your inner world with your partner.
- Learn to build a deeper, more authentic connection, ensuring that both partners feel valued, understood, and emotionally fulfilled.
Meet Your Therapists
Karen Kirkpatrick
Karen has always been a “people person,” deeply fascinated by the human experience and the factors that contribute to individual flourishing. Her journey began as a teacher, but through self-reflection and discovery, she found her true calling in psychology. This led her to become a Registered Psychologist, where she could delve deeper into understanding and supporting people’s mental and emotional well-being. She believes in the restorative quality of humour and uses it appropriately in her work. Karen specializes in treating body image concerns, weight discrimination, disordered eating, anxiety, depression, life transitions, relationship struggles, narcissistic abuse, pre-marital counseling, sexuality and gender exploration, sexual difficulties, grief and loss, stress and burnout, low confidence, emotional regulation difficulties, and trauma. She practices from a Health at Every Size approach and has training as a Body Trust provider. As a sex-positive, LGBTQIA, trans, and poly-friendly therapist, Karen is dedicated to providing inclusive and compassionate care, and is honoured to witness change and share in the healing and recovery process with her clients.
Education
Karen completed a Bachelor of Education degree and a post-bachelor diploma in Inclusive Education at the University of Alberta. She furthered her education with a Master of Counselling Psychology degree from Athabasca University. Committed to continuous learning, Karen has also completed extensive training in EMDR Level 1 and 2, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, Gottman Couples Counseling Level 1 and 2, Intensive Sex Therapy through Guelph University, and is currently training to become a Certified Sex Therapist.
Philosophy
Karen believes that we are the sum of our experiences, environment, families, relationships, personalities, and culture. Understanding how these factors and barriers contribute to our health and wellness is crucial. As we evolve and change throughout our lives, so do our needs and the type of support we require. Karen emphasizes the importance of making small changes to enhance various areas of life. Karen collaborates with clients to create relationships built on mutual respect, empathy, and comfort.
Dr. Jason Jones
For as long as Jason can remember, he has been passionately curious about the world and the nature of human relationships. Drawn to practice counselling psychology, Jason aims to effect real change by engaging directly with people, learning from them, and being on the front lines of making a difference for individuals, couples, and families. Jason’s passion lies in helping couples understand and navigate relationships to foster thriving lives. With a deep-rooted curiosity about human connections and their complexities, Jason has dedicated his career to counselling psychology. His expertise spans areas such as human sexuality, family dynamics during separation and divorce, and the impact of body acceptance on relationships. Through his practice, Jason strives to empower individuals and couples by providing them with the tools and insights needed to cultivate healthy, fulfilling relationships. His commitment to understanding and supporting couples reflects his belief in the transformative power of communication, empathy, and mutual understanding. Jason’s goal is to help every individual and couple he works with not only navigate their challenges but also thrive in their personal and relational growth journeys.
Education
Jason completed a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Psychology at NorthCentral University. He also holds a Master of Counselling degree from the University of Calgary and a Bachelor of Science (with Honours in Psychology) from the University of Alberta. In addition, he has pursued post-graduate certifications and workshops related to sex therapy, couples counselling, family therapy, and body acceptance. Jason is a Certified Sex Therapist and Certified Sex Therapy Supervisor with the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, and Therapists (AASECT).
Philosophy
Jason believes that health and wellness must be addressed holistically, focusing on the entire person, including their relationships, cultures, and contextual experiences. He seeks to treat individuals, couples, and families within the context of the whole system in which they exist. Jason does not believe in pathologizing behavior, as all behavior can be understood within a systemic and cultural frame. He views health as encompassing physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual experiences within our minds and bodies, and between individuals. Jason is dedicated to helping people navigate some of the most difficult, vulnerable, and important aspects of life. He honours and respects these sensitive issues with deep understanding and empathy, offering guidance with warmth, safety, and good humour.
Couples Counselling is Covered by Insurance
Couples counselling is a valuable resource that many individuals and couples can access through insurance coverage, with the convenience of direct billing to Blue Cross (and others). This means that our clients do not have to handle the payment process themselves, as the clinic submits claims directly to Blue Cross for reimbursement. This accessibility ensures that couples can focus on their therapy sessions without financial concerns, allowing them to receive the support they need to strengthen their relationships. Whether navigating communication challenges, intimacy issues, or other relationship dynamics, couples counselling provides a structured and supportive environment for couples to explore and address their concerns effectively.
Plus More
Couples Counselling is Normal
There’s no such thing as a ‘normal’ relationship, but there are healthy and unhealthy relationship patterns. Studies have shown that nearly 50% of married couples have gone to couples counselling. Struggling in relationships is normal, and it’s healthy to seek help. What isn’t normal or healthy is feeling like you’re constantly walking on eggshells in your own home, feeling afraid to speak your mind or ask for your needs to be met, or existing in a constant state of relationship turmoil. While many might say that ‘fighting is good’ and ‘it’s normal to be mad at your partner’, the key element of this equation is knowing how to fight or address anger in a healthy and loving way. If your relationship needs a safe space to express yourselves and learn to communicate in a way that will resolve conflicts, we’re here. Whether you’re heterosexual, LGBTQIA2S+, monogamous, polyamorous, or your relationship looks completely different, we can provide couples therapy. We’re open minded and non-judgemental. Our relationship counselling experts are here to listen and provide support with expertise and compassion.
Couples Counselling is Normal
There’s no such thing as a ‘normal’ relationship, but there are healthy and unhealthy relationship patterns. Studies have shown that nearly 50% of married couples have gone to couples counselling. Struggling in relationships is normal, and it’s healthy to seek help. What isn’t normal or healthy is feeling like you’re constantly walking on eggshells in your own home, feeling afraid to speak your mind or ask for your needs to be met, or existing in a constant state of relationship turmoil. While many might say that ‘fighting is good’ and ‘it’s normal to be mad at your partner’, the key element of this equation is knowing how to fight or address anger in a healthy and loving way. If your relationship needs a safe space to express yourselves and learn to communicate in a way that will resolve conflicts, we’re here. Whether you’re heterosexual, LGBTQIA2S+, monogamous, polyamorous, or your relationship looks completely different, we can provide couples therapy. We’re open minded and non-judgemental. Our relationship counselling experts are here to listen and provide support with expertise and compassion.
Start Healing Your Relationship
Starting to heal your relationship begins with the understanding that you don’t have to accept conflict, fighting, communication struggles, and pain as normal. These challenges can be addressed and overcome with the right support. Dr. Jason and Karen offer compassionate and expert counselling to help you navigate these difficulties, fostering healthier communication and deeper understanding between you and your partner. Don’t let unresolved issues continue to strain your bond—seek professional guidance and start your journey to a happier, more fulfilling partnership today.