Imago Relationship Therapy

Having a partner who REALLY listens to you can make the difference in whether a disagreement becomes a fight. We'll use techniques developed by the Harville and Helen Hendrix to improve communication, which includes listening to really understand, rather than just waiting to fire back a rebuttal.

Imago relationship therapy (IRT) aims to equip couples with the tools necessary to relate to each other in healthier ways and reveal the emotional pathway formed in childhood that led them to their current situation. This form of therapy combines spiritual and behavioral techniques with Western psychological methodologies in order to assist couples in unveiling their unconscious components.

Imago relationship therapy (IRT) endeavors to equip couples with the communication skills necessary to relate to each other in healthy ways, while additionally revealing the emotional pathway formed in childhood that led them to their current relationship frustrations. This approach invites examining the conflict itself; encourages the couple co-create a satisfying solution, heal, and grow together.

This is a specific kind of relationship therapy that is designed to help conflict within relationships. We learn about the individual's own past wounds and how it maybe affecting their parter/relationship. Through this process we learn about personal triggers that are impacting the relationship.

Imago Therapy provides you with skills to mirror, validate, and empathize with your partner and building effective communication.

I work with couples using the couples dialogue, helping them to feel heard and understood, with the goal of engaging in healthy conflict and having a strengthened relationship.

I engage in IMAGO relationship therapy often with couples to help them connect, attach, and communicate more effectively.

My journey first started as an Imago client and I found the method so useful I found a group to train with. Imago theory uses the “unconscious image [Imago] of familiar love” to help map out why misunderstandings occur for the couple and how to use the relationship to change the pattern to one of understanding each other's perspective. It is simple but hard work. Imago respects that the conflict in the relationship is change trying to occur rather than malicious intent.

Imago Relationship Therapy provides couples and families with a safe structure to co-create a healthy, loving and mature relationship where all parties feel heard and understood. Imago is unique in several ways; it provides a dialogical process that you will continually use to connect and heal.

"Imago Relationship Therapy helps remove the blame, shame and criticism common in negative relationship patterns and transform your relationship into one full of understanding and deep connection. We teach you to understand your relationship triggers and reactive behaviors that may stem from unmet needs and how to respond to your partner in a healthy way that benefits you both (From Imago Relationships North America Website)."

I was introduced to Imago when I began counseling work in 2019. Since then, I have used it consistently in my practice. Understanding the process of mirroring, validation, and empathy not only gives me direction as a therapist in session, it also provides a useful guide for a couple to get to know themselves in relation. This method is great for cultivating listening skills by asking one to consider how to reflect back the content, as well as imagining the experience, from what another says.

My couples and relationship work pulls from the leading experts in the field, including Stan Tatkin's PACT model, Sue Johnson's Emotionally Focused Therapy, Ellyn Bader's developmental model of differentiation, and research by the Gottmans. However, I have a special liking for Harville Hendrix and Kelly LaHunt's Imago therapy.

For couples who are committed to staying together and need help working on their relationship, I help them see patterns that are not working. There is no blame game and I don’t take sides. I am on the side of the relationship. We identify the pattern (which may include family history patterns such as alcoholism, abuse, lack of emotions, etc.), break the pattern, and create new, preferred ways of interacting and communicating.

Imago Relationship Therapy provides couples and families with a safe structure to co-create a healthy, loving and mature relationship where all parties feel heard and understood. Imago is unique in several ways; it provides a dialogical process that you will continually use to connect and heal.

My favorite way of working with clients is through Imago because it fosters deep communication.

Imago Relationship Therapy provides couples and families with a safe structure to co-create a healthy, loving and mature relationship where all parties feel heard and understood. Imago is unique in several ways; it provides a dialogical process that you will continually use to connect and heal.