Online Couples Therapy in
Los Angeles and Beyond
Resolving Relationship & Intimacy Issues | Licensed Clinical Psychologist in California and New York
Building intimate connections can be one of the most rewarding and challenging aspects of your life. Lack of intimacy and feelings of isolation, including within the context of a relationship, can be a contributing factor to psychological distress. Couples therapy in Los Angeles, across California or New York can help you address and resolve issues you and your partner(s) are facing.
Dialogue Therapy for Couples
For couple therapy I rely on an integrative depth approach called Dialogue Therapy. This novel method brings together psychoanalytic strategy with mindfulness and elements of drama therapy to help couples learn and apply skills to navigate conflict, enhance communication, and bring about a deepening intimacy. The founder of this method, Dr. Polly Young-Eisendrath in Love Between Equals, writes: “The mutuality of true love feels raw and exposed, as though your heart is on a platter: within this mutuality you risk being both deeply loved and deeply hurt.”
“Dr. Matthew Silverstein is an excellent couple therapist who is trained in Dialogue Therapy. He is also an overall excellent clinician. I know his work through supervising him and recommend him highly for couples or individuals. He’s thoughtful, intelligent, and competent.”
— Dr. Polly Young-Eisendrath
Through Dialogue Therapy you will learn tools to better listen to each other, build trust, empathy, and love for each other–as you are
So many challenges can affect couples regardless of how long they’ve been together. You might feel like something is missing from your relationship, patterns of arguing and fighting may repeat without being resolved, or maybe addiction and co-addiction are overtaking your capacity to connect more authentically.
What’s Getting in the Way of Healthy Relationships?
Cultural values and community support can be such a source of guidance and strength for couples. Yet when collective beliefs are used to shame or judge couples that may be non-normative whether because of gender, age, ability, religious, or ethnic differences, this can intrude into the well-being of relationships. Relationships can also become a venue for enacting, often unintentionally, old patterns of addiction, hurt, neglect, or abuse. When a couple lacks the tools for navigating differences or communicating about problems in a way that can be mutually helpful, trust and intimacy often start to break down.
“To open our hearts more fully to love’s power and grace we must dare to acknowledge how little we know of love in both theory and practice.”
— bell hooks, “All About Love”
The Benefits of Couples Therapy Los Angeles
and Beyond
Couple therapy can provide a productive arena to first acknowledge the realities of the relationship. It can provide a venue to realistically and compassionately assess what is challenging to an existing or desired relationship and what may be interfering with growing individually or as a couple, accepting one’s own sexuality, erotic interests, financial needs, relationship values (e.g. monogamy, polyamory, kink, open relationships, being solitary), and extra-relationship values (e.g., family, friends, community, and religious life).
Participating in couples therapy in Los Angeles can also offer insight, skills, and tools needed to reduce conflict, sustain stability, and build enduring intimacy over time. Couples therapy can offer an opportunity to explore the possibility of deepening a relationship and solidifying commitment, or sometimes, it can be a respectful and loving way of allowing a relationship to come to a natural close.
Couples Therapy in a Fast-Paced City Like Los Angeles
Building and maintaining relationships can be difficult in such a large, fast-paced city like Los Angeles. Did you know more than 26,000 same-sex couples live in Los Angeles County—the highest number of same-sex couples in any county in the state of California?
Sure, Los Angeles is known for demanding careers and larger-than-life lifestyles that can put intense pressure on couples. Addressing challenges head-on with support, tools, and insights from couples therapy in Los Angeles is the key to strengthening intimacy, communication, and emotional connection.
How Can Couples in Los Angeles and Beyond
Strengthen Their Relationships with Therapy?
Every couple is different, and there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution for couples who want to strengthen their relationships. Fortunately, couples therapy can provide you with personalized insights and takeaways designed to help you achieve your unique goals. Here are just a few ways to nurture more connected, intimate relationships
- Practice Effective Communication: Open and honest communication is key to any relationship’s success. Couples can practice active listening, express their needs clearly, and avoid criticism or defensiveness when expressing themselves. For example, paraphrasing what your partner says before responding can promote a sense of understanding.
- Spend Quality Time Together: Focus on spending time together without distractions (such as scrolling through Instagram on your phone or answering work emails in front of each other). Quality time together helps strengthen emotional connections and reinforces how much you care about your relationship.
- Express Gratitude and Appreciation: Regularly expressing appreciation makes a world of difference. Understand each other’s “love languages” and what makes your partner feel seen, heard, and appreciated. The smallest gestures can make the biggest impact.
- Manage Conflict Constructively: Things happen, but how couples handle conflict is crucial. Focus on the issue at hand without attacking each other’s traits or character. Consider using “I” statements (“I feel” instead of “You always”) to move toward a resolution.
- Support Individual Growth: A healthy relationship balances togetherness with individuality. Support your partner’s personal goals and respect their space. Doing so can lead to more fulfillment in the relationship.
Looking for Couples Therapy in Los Angeles, or Anywhere in California or New York? Let’s Connect.
I’m a Clinical Psychologist licensed in both California and New York offering online therapy for adult couples across the age, gender, and cultural spectrum. Give me a call if you are ready to:
—Move through conflict and cultivate healthier, more effective communication
—Deepen emotional and physical intimacy
—Recommit to what makes your relationship meaningful and lasting
Supporting LGBTQ+ couples across Los Angeles, California and New York is a central part of my practice. As a gay/queer psychologist who has worked with LGBTQ+ couples for more than two decades, I bring the sensitivity, skill, and understanding that can make a difference. I would be honored to help you work toward your intimate relationship goals. Send me a message and I’ll reply as soon as possible!