I have a client who routinely shares with others that she’s in marriage counseling. She wants to break down the stigma of counseling by talking about it freely. Since being in marriage counseling isn’t typically what individuals share, people are curious about what happens in marriage counseling. My client shares, “It’s a place where my husband and I bring our stuff.”

She continues, “It’s not about role-playing or doing exercises. It’s where we come to talk about what’s bothering us in our relationship and in our lives, and we work through it.”

Most couples in marriage counseling are no longer able to work through issues on their own. These conversations break down and the relationship becomes more tense and distant. Marriage counseling teaches couples how to talk with each other about difficult topics and couples come to marriage counseling to practice doing things differently. In fact, I want couples to bring in their most difficult issues.

Bring your stuff.