Effective Communication Counseling for Couples in Minnesota
You and your partner struggling with communication issues, frequent conflicts, and feeling misunderstood.
You’re ready to:
Feel heard and understood in your relationship
Stop tip-toeing around your partner
Manage conflict in a healthier, more productive way
Deepen intimacy and affection
couples counseling for communication issues can help you get there!
I welcome your relationship exactly where it is.
Couples counseling is a vulnerable and sometimes scary undertaking, but I believe that every relationship has the ability to be strong and beautiful; some relationships just need a little extra help to get there.
I like to create space for you and your partner to explore your wants and needs within conflict resolution therapy while learning skills to communicate more effectively, increase intimacy, and build trust.
Be exactly who you are. Come to sessions with your gallon of coffee and swear up a storm. Or show up when your dog is barking incessantly at the mail delivery person (fair warning: I will ask to see the dog).
How couples therapy and marriage
counseling in Minnesota works:
You can repair the hurt, deepen your bond, and create a future together while still honoring each of your unique identities.
We all have ideas about how relationships are "supposed" to work.
When reality doesn't match those expectations, it leads to frustration, hurt, and resentment. In couples counseling, we'll start by identifying those expectations—which ones are reasonable, open to compromise, or just not realistic. This gives you both a shared baseline for how to interact.
You're also bringing your own baggage into this relationship. Based on past experiences, you may think or act in certain programmed ways that feel normal to you but can actually be harmful if left unaddressed. I'll help you unpack these things, because your experiences matter; they're real, valid, and deserve attention.
Using proven approaches like The Gottman Method Couples Therapy and Emotionally Focused Therapy, we can create new healthy patterns together. You'll lower conflict, improve communication, and rebuild that strong bond that brought you together.
My goal is for you to leave each session with practical takeaways to apply in your daily life: new insights, skills to practice, resources to check out, or tools to start making small but powerful changes.
I'm looking forward to working with you both!
Hey, I'm Nicolle!
I’m a sex & couples therapist in Minnesota.
I love helping couples navigate their relationships by helping them improve communication, rekindle friendship, and improve intimacy. I’m excited to meet you!
To learn more about if working with me is right for you, learn more about me here. Learn about my rates here.
Explore my other specialties
Frequently Asked Questions
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In our first few sessions together, we'll chat about what's been challenging you and bringing you to therapy. We'll look at your history and define the goals you want to achieve. I use a blend of attachment-based, Gottman Method, and Emotionally Focused Therapy to decrease conflict and strengthen communication and closeness.
My approach as a therapist is down-to-earth, practical, and straightforward. I'll take an active role in our time together, working right alongside you to reach your goals. I'm looking forward to partnering with you on this journey toward a stronger relationship. Together we've got this!
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How long we'll work together depends on what you need as a couple. Research shows most people feel improvement within 10-15 sessions, so I'd expect something similar. Some couples feel good enough to "graduate" in that timeframe. Others find they like the process and want to keep going as life changes.
My goal is to help you meet your goals as quickly as we can. As long as counseling is still helpful, I'm here to support you both. There's no set timeline—we'll stick with it for as long as you feel you're getting value and making progress. This is your journey, so we'll adapt our pace and course based on what works best for you.
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It's pretty normal for one partner to pursue therapy first before the other is on board. But that doesn't mean we can't start making positive changes in your relationship. I'm happy to meet with you solo for now.
We'll focus on your personal goals and find ways to improve things between you two, even if your partner isn't ready to join sessions yet. Once they are ready to participate, we can transition to working together. But in the meantime, we'll do what we can to make progress—I'm here for you either way!