Relationship Counseling
Do You Struggle In Your Connections With Others?
Are you tired of finding yourself in high-conflict relationships?
Do you regularly feel misunderstood by or isolated from those around you?
Could you benefit from learning new skills for healthy communication and boundary setting?
If you’re someone who frequently moves through jobs and relationships, you may wonder why you can’t maintain a sense of continuity. Perhaps you have a hard time connecting with or feeling comfortable around others, making it difficult to maintain interpersonal relationships. This has likely affected your personal and professional life, creating setbacks among partners, family members, friends, and coworkers.
As a result, you may experience intense social anxiety or fear of engaging with others. Maybe you often feel left out of the group dynamic or struggle with worrying that everyone’s judging you. Other people seem to have their needs met in relationships, leaving you to feel frustrated that your relationships aren’t as productive, fulfilling, or meaningful.
You may believe that if you could just find a long-term relationship or experience successful connections with friends and colleagues, life-affirming opportunities would open up for you. After all, it would mean so much to feel significant to and respected by others.
Yet, good interpersonal communication skills can be learned as you find relief from social anxiety. In individual counseling at Wilmington Psychotherapy, we can guide you in adjusting your mindset about your relationships so that you can be a more effective family member, partner, friend, and colleague.
“It Is An Absolute Human Certainty That No One Can Know His Own Beauty Or Perceive A Sense Of His Own Worth Until It Has Been Reflected Back To Him In The Mirror Of Another Loving, Caring Human Being.” – John Joseph Powell
Our relationships are complex, but human connection is essential to our ability to thrive, find balance, and cultivate meaning. When certain patterns or attachment injuries prevent us from forming healthy bonds, it can compromise every aspect of life. Disruptions in our relationships lead to lower self-esteem and increased anxiety, creating hurdles to our mental health.
An astounding seven percent of the population—15 million American adults—live with Social Anxiety Disorder. These individuals avoid situations that would otherwise be considered “normal,” unable to understand how those around them can easily engage in relationships with their friends, partners, and peers. Because they find it difficult to communicate, individuals with social anxiety are more likely to experience job changes, setbacks in their intimate relationships, and substance abuse to numb the psychological pain created by social situations.
It doesn’t help, either, that our culture has made it increasingly difficult to sustain healthy relationships. New technologies contribute to barriers in intimacy and effective communication skills while adding to job-related pressures and stress. According to Steven Covey, author of The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People, “This charged atmosphere makes it all the more imperative that we nourish our relationships and develop tools, skills, and an enhanced capacity to find new and better solutions to our problems.”
Unfortunately, social anxiety prevents many of us from forging strong connections. Instead of approaching others with openness and vulnerability, we experience low self-esteem and shame that we don’t naturally have the solutions for our relationship difficulties.
But in the safe space of relationship counseling, you can foster a connection with a therapist who will model healthy relationship and communication patterns for you. Working together with the counselors at Wilmington Psychotherapy, you can gain meaningful insights and awareness to enhance your relationships.
Relationship Counseling Is The Gateway To A More Productive And Fulfilling Life
If you find relationships stressful or intimidating, it may be hard to see how a therapist might offer some guidance and relief. However, our experienced and skilled clinicians are here to support you in lifting the burden of social anxiety so that you can experience more connection, meaning, and possibility in your relationships. With the skills you gain in relationship counseling, you can become a more flexible and compassionate partner, friend, family member, and peer.
Our Approach
Our counselors use a blend of evidence-based motivational and behavioral therapies that can aid in your ability to have crucial conversations and produce win-win relationships in your life. Approaches like Motivational Enhancement Therapy (MET) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) can help you clarify relationship goals, while Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy (REBT) allows you to adjust your perspective and combat the negative beliefs propelling your social anxiety.
Our approach to counseling offers a multitude of skills to assist you in overcoming codependent behaviors and building healthy relationships through active listening, appropriate boundary setting, good communication, and empathy. With our support, you can reach new depths of inner knowledge and awareness that will help you to make meaningful connections.
Counseling can increase your ability to maintain successful relationships, which are the gateway to a healthy, fulfilling, and satisfying life.
Maybe You’d Like To Further Explore And Strengthen Your Relationships But Aren’t Sure If Counseling Is Right For You…
I have social anxiety, and the idea of working with a therapist intimidates me.
As trained and experienced therapists, we can guide you in developing awareness about your social challenges. While some of us may be more naturally inclined toward social situations than others, we all need to be taught about healthy communication and relationship building at some point. A therapist offers you the skills, insight, and knowledge to lay the groundwork for a meaningful life that is enriched with community.
Furthermore, quality relationship building is easier than you might think. You don’t have to become a public speaker or win the popularity contest—you just have to hone your strengths and values so that you can be a more effective partner, friend, family member, and peer.
Counseling won’t increase my luck with relationships.
Every relationship we have requires a negotiation of knowledge, skills, and identities. While many factors might contribute to our success (or lack thereof) in relationships, identifying individual patterns is a highly effective way to determine where communication, intimacy, and connection can improve. By enhancing your skills in these areas, you will be more ready and able to maintain a healthy long-term relationship.
How will individual therapy improve my relationships?
Individual counseling gives you an opportunity to explore and examine your history and relationship challenges. By working with a therapist who is only focused on your growth and development (as opposed to a counselor working with couples), you can gain tailored insight into your unique relationship style and develop customized communication skills that suit your individual needs.
Enhance Your Bonds, Improve Your Life
If you experience frequent setbacks in your personal, familial, and professional relationships, counseling at Wilmington Psychotherapy can guide you in building stronger connections. To schedule a free, 15-minute phone consultation with one of our relationship counselors, contact us or call 910 777 – 1189.