Premarital counseling in Santa Rosa

Who premarital counseling is for

Most couples come while they're engaged, but you don't need a wedding date to begin. I work with partners who are newly committed and want to build strong footing early, couples weighing whether marriage is the right next step, and those blending families or marrying later in life. Premarital counseling isn't a sign that something's wrong; it's what thoughtful couples do to give a good relationship the best possible start.

Premarital counseling and premarital therapy

People use the terms almost interchangeably, and the line between them is more about timing than anything else. Premarital counseling is preventive: it helps a basically healthy relationship prepare for marriage, strengthening communication and surfacing important conversations before they turn into problems. Premarital therapy tends to describe the same work when a specific difficulty (a recurring fight, a trust issue, a hard decision) is already causing strain and you want to address it before the wedding. Either way, you're in the same room doing the same kind of work; we simply start wherever you actually are.

What we'll cover

We follow what matters most to the two of you, and usually spend time on the areas couples find hardest to work through on their own: how you communicate and handle conflict; money, spending, and financial expectations; family, in-laws, and the traditions you each bring; intimacy and connection; household roles and day-to-day life; and whether and how you want to raise children. The point isn't to pass a test or agree on everything. It's to understand each other more fully and to build a few concrete skills you'll actually use once married life gets busy.

The benefits of starting before the wedding

Couples who prepare tend to enter marriage with clearer expectations, better tools for disagreement, and fewer assumptions left unspoken. You learn how to raise a hard topic without it becoming a fight, how to repair after one, and how to keep talking when life gets stressful. None of that guarantees an easy marriage (nothing does), but it means the first real challenge finds you already knowing how to face it together, rather than working it out for the first time under pressure.

Grounded in the Gottman Method

My couples work, premarital included, draws on the Gottman Method, a research-based approach to communication, conflict, and connection. We look at the patterns between you, practice new ways of talking and listening, and build habits that hold up over time. You can read more about Gottman Method couples therapy, and if you're facing a specific difficulty rather than preparing for marriage, my couples therapy in Santa Rosa page may be the better starting point.

In person in Santa Rosa, online across California

My office is at 5755 Mountain Hawk Drive, Suite 206, in Santa Rosa, and I see couples in person from across Sonoma County. When schedules make one place hard, a common problem when you're planning a wedding, I also offer secure telehealth sessions throughout California.

I'm a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (CA LMFT #139263). You can verify my license with the California Board of Behavioral Sciences, or read more about how I work.