Are you arguing more than usual? Are you dealing with family pressures, work pressures, and emotional issues that are causing friction between you and your partner?
Do not let it alarm you. For the record, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender couples often face many of the same relationship and life issues as hetero couples.
What Kind of Relationship Problems Might Gay Couples Encounter?
But being a “non-traditional” couple often means facing additional problems imposed by a society still learning to accept them.
In the United States prior to 2000, for example, same-sex couples were routinely denied legal recognition of their relationship, whether it took the form of marriage, common-law relationships, etc.
But that changed rapidly, beginning with civil union legislation for same-sex couples in Vermont and culminating with the legal recognition of same-sex marriage of all 50 states in 2015.
The battle continues, thought, and LGBTIQQ couples continue to fight against discrimination, including from members of their own families.
All too frequently, this means that parents, siblings, or other family members may refuse to provide the emotional support that couples need.
All of this provides special pressures that hetero couples will never have to face.
What Do Research Studies Say?
Even research into couples counseling indicates that same-sex couples are still woefully underrepresented compared to opposite-sex couples.
Still, studies do indicate that gay and lesbian couples often experience many of the same issues along with problems and strengths that are uniquely their own.
This includes coming to terms with the often-unique sacrifices that gay partners need to make for one another, something that can often generate conflict and resentment at times.
Coming to terms with those sacrifi and learning to accept one another’s differences is often the key to relationship longevity, as many research studies indicate.
But learning to accept these differences as well as regaining that sense of trust and intimacy that first brought couples together is often a work in progress and, almost inevitably, breakdowns happen, and couples often need to turn to trained therapists who can help repair and strengthen those relationships.
Unfortunately, it is still far too common to find counselors who simply lack the training or experience to help you come to terms with the kind of problems you are facing.
So, doesn’t it make more sense to find a counselor who is aware of all the latest research and who has the knowledge and experience you need?
No matter where you and your partner are in the process of coming out. You need someone who is uniquely sensitive to what the two of you are going through.
You also need a counselor trained in the latest therapy techniques and someone who can help you build up the support networks that can help your relationship prosper.
That includes “families of choice” and friendship networks that can help couples heal.
Is Gay Couples Counseling for Us?
Every couple faces problems occasionally, significantly since relationships are constantly changing as both partners mature with time.
And many couples may also feel uncomfortable dealing with a counselor face-to-face or might have trouble finding a trained counselor in their immediate area.
So, instead of having to travel long distances to see a counselor in another city, getting the counseling you need is now just a phone call or a video link away.
Electronic or e-counseling is becoming an increasingly important option for millions of clients seeking help worldwide.
It can also be just what you and your partner need to get your relationship back on track. This brings us to Pride Counseling and its unique role in putting you in contact with a therapist who cares.
What is Pride Counseling?
Pride Counseling is your one-stop solution for all your gay couple counseling needs. Designed as a platform that lets clients and therapists.
Our mission is to build, maintain, and support a platform that lets users and therapists communicate effectively and facilitate this channel to get the most out of their interaction.
Not only do we use state-of-the-art security to protect confidentiality, but we include therapists from across the country, including ones who are even in your area.
To get started with your Pride Counseling journey, first, click on the link at the top of the article.
This will take you to then you will be asked some confidential questions about the mental health of you and your partner, the pronouns you prefer, and how a therapist can contact you. That is it.
The rest is up to us as we find a qualified therapist matched to your specific needs who will then contact you directly.
Each of our therapists has been extensively trained in the latest therapy techniques and have just the right experience to gain your trust and help you and your partner move towards a better future together.
And it is totally up to you two how you want this therapy to be conducted: live chat, messaging, phone sessions, or video calls! You are the ones in charge of deciding that!
Even if you have never been in counseling before or had previously bad experiences with less-helpful therapists, the counselors that we provide will be completely accepting and open to your needs. And it is 100 percent confidential!
How Long Can I Continue with Pride Counseling and How Much Does it Cost?
The cost of therapy through Pride Counseling usually ranges from 65-87 USD per week and is billed every 4 weeks. Therapy can continue until you and your therapist mutually agree that your treatment is complete, but you are free to cancel your membership at any time for any reason.
As for how long the counseling will last, that often depends on the couple and their issues. Everyone is different, so there is no way to tell how long the treatment process will be.
While three are short-term treatment methods, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy, whether this would work in your case will depend on what you and your counselor decide is most suitable.
Also, other issues might come up, including sexual problems and substance abuse, which might make treatment even longer or require referral to another counselor better trained to help.