Couples COMMUNICATION Workshop · In Person & Online
Words That Keep Us Together Couples Workshop
Learn how to work through recurring disagreements without falling into escalation, defensiveness, or withdrawal.
A single phrase, sideways look, or off-putting tone can quickly derail a productive discussion and leave you feeling misunderstood and disconnected.
In this four-session workshop, you will learn how to talk through differences, prevent and repair escalation, and communicate in ways that support understanding and connection. Join us in-person or online.
The next couples workshop begins October 21 in person and October 22 online. Cost is $500 per couple or $300 per individual for all four sessions.
ABOUT THE Couples Workshop
What is the Words That Keep Us Together Workshop?
The Words That Keep Us Together Workshop is a four-session workshop for couples who keep getting stuck in recurring disagreements..
Based on Dr. Richard Rein’s four decades of work with thousands of couples, the workshop helps you understand why disagreements occur and learn what to say or do instead.
Before each session, you’ll read one part of the book Words That Keep Us Together and complete the Reflection and Practices exercises with your partner. During workshop sessions, Dr. Rein will use your questions and experiences to help you apply what you’re learning.
At the end of the four sessions, couples are able to communicate in ways that support understanding and connection.
What You’ll Learn in The Couples Workshop
Dr. Rein has spent four decades building on Gottman’s clinical research, translating those findings into practical, real-world communication. This workshop shows couples how their usual language patterns cause conflict and what to say instead.
- 1: Having Conversations
- 2. Reshaping Conversations
- 3: Repairing Conversations
- 4: Intimate Conversations
Session 1: Having Conversations
Words are powerful. They can inspire or create pain. Successful couples can discuss issues and differences, talk respectfully, and respond to each other’s needs.
In Session 1, you will work on skills that include:
- Recognizing common destructive communication patterns
- Becoming more responsive
- Listening more effectively
- Expressing complaints and concerns more successfully
- Understanding the role that language plays in your conversations
Session 2: Reshaping Conversations
It’s not what you say; it’s how you say it. In Session 2, you will learn to recognize and change communication that contributes to conflict, including:
- Attacks
- Demands
- Defensiveness
- Withdrawal
- Subtle criticism
- Trigger words
- Absolute language
- Rhetorical questions
- Misperceptions
You will also work on more successful ways to express concerns and respond to your partner.
Session 3: Repairing Conversations
In Session 3, you will learn how to recognize when a conversation is escalating, prevent it from gaining momentum, and repair it once it has gone wrong. You will work on skills that include:
- Recognizing escalation
- Understanding how escalation develops
- Preventing escalation
- Filtering
- Restating
- Feedback
- Correcting misperceptions
- Rewording an unsuccessful statement
- Learning repair techniques
- Practicing how to restart a conversation
- Getting the conversation back on track
Session 4: Intimate Conversations
The best relationships are safe enough to deepen one’s vulnerability and challenge oneself. In Session 4, you will learn how to
- Express vulnerable feelings
- Support a vulnerable partner
- Share thoughts, feelings, fears, and dreams
- Practice Intimate sharing
- Build rituals of connection
- Protect time together
Who This Workshop Is For
The Words That Keep Us Together Workshop is for couples who care about their relationship but fall into the same patterns that lead to conflict and disconnection.
This workshop is a good fit for couples experiencing:
- The same arguments over and over
- Feeling unheard
- Defensiveness
- Arguments that escalate
- Withdrawal
- Misunderstandings
- Not knowing what to say
- Difficulty working through common relationship issues together
If you are dealing with complex, entrenched, or emotionally charged issues, Couples Therapy & Marriage Counseling is a better support option.
About Dr. Richard Rein
Dr. Richard Rein is a licensed psychologist and certified Gottman Method couples therapist who has spent more than four decades working with thousands of couples.
Through that work, Dr. Rein has developed his own practical methods and frameworks for understanding how couples communicate.
His approach focuses on the words, perceptions, and responses between partners and how those small exchanges create larger patterns of connection or disconnection.
Dr. Rein shows couples where conversations go wrong, why they go wrong, and what to say or do instead so they can communicate in ways that support understanding and connection.
Words That Keep Us Together Workshop FAQs
No. The workshop provides structured instruction, practice, and guidance for couples who can learn and apply the skills together.
Couples therapy provides individualized support when problems are more complex, entrenched, or difficult to work through without direct intervention from Dr. Rein.
The book provides concepts, reflections, and exercises for you and your partner.
In the workshop, Dr. Rein offers guidance as you practice these skills. His support helps you identify what works, where adjustments are needed, and how to apply the skills effectively to enhance understanding and connection in your conversations.
Yes. You’ll need to purchase a copy of Words That Keep Us Together before the workshop begins. The book is available in hardcover, Kindle, and audio formats.
Before each workshop session, you’ll read one part of the book and complete the corresponding Reflection and Practices exercises with your partner.
The Words That Keep Us Together Workshop is a four-session series. Choose one of the following in-person or online workshops.
In-Person Workshops in Hingham, MA
October–November 2026
October 21, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
October 28, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
November 4, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
November 11, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
November–December 2026
November 18, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
December 2, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
December 9, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
December 16, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
January 2027
January 6, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
January 13, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
January 20, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
January 27, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
Online Workshops
October–November 2026
October 22, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
October 29, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
November 5, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
November 12, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
November–December 2026
November 19, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
December 3, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
December 10, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
December 17, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
January 2027
January 7, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
January 14, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
January 21, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
January 28, 6:30–7:45 PM ET
Yes. Individuals may attend the four-session workshop for $300.
No. Participation is encouraged, but couples are not expected to share personal issues in front of the group.
No. There is no role playing or discussion exercise that requires couples to practice with other couples.
No. This is one workshop delivered in four sessions designed to be completed in sequence.
Yes. Couples participating online can attend from separate locations.
Ideally, couples will be on camera. Participants may choose not to use their camera for privacy reasons.
No. Workshop recordings will not be available in order to respect the privacy of the couples participating.
The workshop covers common communication issues couples can work through together.
Private Couples Therapy is available for more complex, entrenched, or emotionally charged issues where couples need individualized support.
You will receive a full refund if you cancel at least 7 days before the workshop begins.
Register for the Words That Keep Us Together Workshop
Build a stronger, more successful relationship by learning and practicing communication skills that help you understand one another, work through differences, and stay connected.
$125 per couple or $75 per individual.