Marriage Counseling in Chicago

Marriage counseling is a form of therapy designed specifically for married partners who want to strengthen, repair, or better understand their relationship.

In marriage counseling, we explore communication patterns, emotional triggers, unresolved conflict, and areas of disconnection. The goal is not to assign blame, but to help both partners feel heard, understood, and more connected.

Whether you are navigating ongoing conflict, rebuilding trust, or feeling emotionally distant, marriage counseling can help you move from tension toward partnership.

Marriage counseling can support couples experiencing:

• Repeated arguments that never fully resolve

• Emotional disconnection or resentment

• Infidelity or breaches of trust

• Intimacy challenges

• Parenting stress affecting the relationship

• Major life transitions

• Feeling more like roommates than partners

Even long standing patterns can shift when both partners are willing to examine what is happening beneath the surface.

The length of marriage counseling depends on your goals, the depth of the issues involved, and how long patterns have been in place.

Some couples attend for a focused period of several months. Others choose longer term support to deepen communication and connection.

During your first sessions, we will clarify your goals and create a plan that feels supportive and realistic for both of you.

In your first session, we will explore what brings you in, the history of your marriage, and the patterns that feel most challenging.

Ongoing sessions focus on slowing down conflict, increasing emotional safety, and building new ways of communicating. You will both have space to speak and be heard.

Marriage counseling is active and collaborative. We move beyond surface arguments to understand what is happening underneath.

Marriage counseling may be helpful if:

• You both want the relationship to work

• One partner feels more invested but the other is open

• You feel stuck in repetitive conflict

• You are considering separation but want clarity

You do not have to be in crisis to benefit. Many couples seek marriage counseling simply because they want their partnership to feel stronger and more connected.

Yes. Confidentiality is central to our work. Your therapist will hold everything shared in session with care and privacy, except in rare cases where safety requires disclosure (as outlined in our informed consent policies).

Yes. Balanced Awakening provides inclusive and affirming marriage counseling for couples of all genders, identities, and orientations.

Every marriage has unique dynamics. Our approach is tailored to your lived experience and relationship structure.

Our therapy rate for the first two sessions is $250. After that, 55 minute sessions are $225.

All of our therapists are in network with United Healthcare/Optum, BCBS PPO and Aetna insurance.

It is common for one partner to feel more motivated than the other.

If your spouse feels hesitant, you can begin by sharing your desire to strengthen the relationship rather than framing therapy as something that needs to be fixed.

In some cases, starting with an individual consultation can help clarify how to approach the conversation. Even one willing partner can create meaningful change.

Balanced Awakening offers depth oriented, relationally focused marriage counseling in Chicago.

We integrate attachment based work and Imago Relationship Therapy to help couples move beyond surface communication tools and into deeper emotional understanding.

Our approach is warm, structured, and non blaming. We help married partners feel seen, respected, and capable of meaningful repair.

Yes. Marriage counseling can provide space to thoughtfully explore your options.

Some couples use counseling to rebuild connection and repair trust. Others use it to gain clarity and communicate respectfully during difficult decisions.

The goal is not to push you in any direction, but to help you move forward with intention and understanding.

Yes. We offer both in person marriage counseling at our Chicago locations and virtual therapy for couples residing in Illinois.

Virtual sessions provide flexibility while maintaining the same depth and structure as in person work.

Absolutely.

Many couples seek marriage counseling after ten, twenty, or even thirty years together. Long term marriages often carry unspoken patterns, old resentments, and life transitions that were never fully processed.

Marriage counseling provides space to revisit those patterns with greater awareness and emotional safety. Even relationships that have felt distant for years can experience meaningful shifts when both partners are willing to slow down and engage differently.

It is never too late to strengthen your marriage.

Yes. Marriage counseling can be especially important after a breach of trust.

Rebuilding trust after infidelity takes time, structure, and emotional safety. In marriage counseling, we focus on creating space for honest conversations, accountability, and deeper understanding of what led to the rupture.

Healing does not mean ignoring what happened. It means addressing it directly, thoughtfully, and at a pace that supports both partners.

Many couples find that with the right support, it is possible not only to repair trust, but to build a more intentional and connected marriage moving forward.

Yes. We love helping couples prepare for marriage. Our Premarital Counseling focuses on building communication, intimacy, and a shared vision for your future.