Common Dilemmas in Couple Therapy

Common Dilemmas in Couple Therapy addresses four common problems that couples therapists face everyday in their offices - problems that leave therapists exhausted, drained, challenged, alive, racing, and on edge. These dilemmas encompass not only the difficult challenges therapists face everyday, but also the passions and profound disappointments of human intimate partnerships. The purpose of this book is not only to explore and give case illustrations of these dilemmas, but also to give therapists strategies to use and help them understand and handle their own profound experiences while doing this work.

Judith P. Leavitt

Section I: Dealing with a Difficult Partner. Types of Difficult Partners. Overview. Therapy Strategies: Offensive Difficult Partners. Therapy Strategies: Various Types of Difficult Partners. Section II: Secrets in Couple Therapy. Issues about Secrets. The Dynamics of Secrets. The Challenge of Working with Secrets in Couple Therapy. Guidelines and Strategies for Therapists. Section III: Dealing with a Partner Who Won't/Can't Change. The Dynamics of "Crossover" Issues in Couple Relationships. Therapists Roles, Experiences, and Strategies. Section IV: The Breakup of a Couple Relationship. The Dynamics of a Breakup. The Stages of Breakup, Therapy Strategies, and the Therapist's Roles and Experiences.