Couples Counseling For Parents

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. One of the many things that changes when couples move into the parenting years is their sex life. One of the primary things that influences a couple's sex life is each partner's personality. Dr. Stephen Mitchell and Erin Mitchell, MACP talk about how being introverted or extroverted can shape parenting part...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. Yes, for many this little phrase can be triggering for the "well" partner that hears it and triggering for the "sick" partner that says it. What is behind this simply little phrase causing so much disconnection in a parenting partner relationship? Dr. Stephen Mitchell and Erin Mitchell, MACP unpac...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. Parenting is a never ending river of tasks, responsibilities, worries, joy, tender moments, tears, comical exchanges etc. Parenting is constant and in the constancy of parenting many couples find themselves trying to survive the day and get to the next day. This survival mentality makes it hard to communicate and wit...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. Desire can feel elusive for many parenting partners. A couple that once felt close, passionate, and full of desire, can feel tired, alone, and unwanted within the new context of parenting. This shift is normal and happens not because the kids or your partner did something wrong, but simply because the context has cha...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. Parenting is a new endeavor for a couple. Each pregnancy, each kid bring with it scenarios and situations that are unique and uncharted territory for a couple. So, in this process of parenting both partners are going to have ideas about how to parent, make “mistakes” that they need to learn from, and have certain bli...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. The idea that everyone needs praise, affirmation, or encouragement can be counter to what our society teaches and what we learned in our own family of origin. Our culture says, "Be independent, be your own confidence." Your family of origin might have convinced you it is weak or silly to need anything from...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. You've heard it and maybe you have even felt it as a parenting partner. "We are just roommates." What can couples do, especially in the first year postpartum, to stay connected. Dr. Stephen Mitchell and Erin Mitchell, MACP offer some practical steps couples can take to stay intentional about connecting...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. "We feel stuck!" How do you change patterns of communication in your parenting partner relationship. So many couples feel like they have the same tired conversations, the same conflicts, and end up feeling the same feelings of invalidation and frustration. Dr. Stephen Mitchell and Erin Mitchell, MACP identi...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. Everyone copes differently with stress. But when your partner copes with stress differently it can get messy. The difference can get parenting partners in a tug of war that says, “If you would respond to stress the way I do you would feel better.” But what partners are really saying to each other is, “If you would re...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. Parenting changes a couple's world. Yet, the change is not equitable. This is one of the most profound areas of conflict, dismissal, and pain for parenting partners. Dr. Stephen Mitchell and Erin Mitchell, MACP discuss how inequity between parenting partners is real, has to be discussed for the health of the cou...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. Which sounds more like you in your parenting partner relationship: My partner would love me or pay attention to my needs if they felt I was enough or my partner is always telling me that I am not doing enough in our relationship? Welcome to the Not Enough Cycle that most parenting partners find themselves circling ar...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. How has the global pandemic impacted your parenting partner relationship? Dr. Stephen Mitchell and Erin Mitchell, MACP discuss the importance of couples understanding their stress response to the pandemic and how it has shaped their couple relationship.  Take the Couple Communication Quiz! Ever wonder why you and you...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. It's February and many parenting partners will be thinking about Valentine's Day. Sometimes it's the special days that can bring the most pressure to meet your partner's expectations and can leave many couples disappointed when expectations are not met.  However, these "big" days can sim...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. It happens all the time for parenting partners, you hear what your partner is not saying. They say, "I'm tired" you hear them say, "I'm more tired than you." Why does this happen for parenting partners and what can they do to stop hearing what their partner is not saying? In todays episo...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. Parenting is a massive transition and change that can stir up fears for partners. Fears about failure, losing someone you love, feeling confused, feeling alone etc. Many times couples don't know how to talk with one another about these fears because they are afraid it will sound foolish, make their partner angry...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. For many parenting couples physical touch can be complex and a topic of conflict. In fact it can feel like a daily opportunity to feel rejected, abandoned, disrespected, ignored, and controlled. How does the parenting context influence touch in your couple relationship? How can you and your partner communicate respec...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. Parenting couples are tired and stressed. How do you communicate respectfully and productively as a parenting couple when you are exhausted and stressed? This context is hard to change during the parenting years so couples have to learn to communicate in the midst of feeling tired and stressed. In this episode we giv...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. What happens when you hear your partner snap at your kid? Many couples find that this scenario leads to conflict and disconnection in their couple relationship. In this episode we  explore some of the deeper psychological factors that are at play in this scenario and give couples practical scripts to use to reduce co...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. Grandparents can be such a wonderful and vital part of your kids lives! Also, grandparents can be a significant support and help to your couple relationship. The loss of healthy, involved grandparents can be a profound grief for couples. This loss can be due to death, mental illness, distance, toxicity, conflict, etc...

Got a question, comment, or just want to drop some encouragement? Send us a text. The contextual pressure cooker of pregnancy and postpartum can challenge a couple's capacity for coping with stress. As each partner struggles individually with stress, they can miss their partner's experience. This can be felt in countless little moments of feeling overlooked, misunderstood, or invalidated...