Couples Counselling
A space to find your way back to each other.
Couples counselling at Empatherapies in Buderim, on the Sunshine Coast, and online across Australia and New Zealand. A safe, neutral space to explore what is keeping you and your partner stuck — and to build the communication, repair and connection your relationship needs to feel like home again.
Where this work helps most
Couples come to therapy at very different moments — some in the early bruises of a hard year, some after long stretches of disconnection. These are the territories the work most often moves through.
Communication that has stopped landing
When conversations turn into the same argument in different clothes — or stop happening at all. We slow things down enough to hear what is actually being said, and what isn’t.
Cycles of conflict and disconnection
Most couples don’t have hundreds of problems — they have a handful, returning in different forms. We work to see the pattern, soften the loop, and find a different way through.
Rebuilding safety, trust and intimacy
After ruptures large or small — a breach, a long drift, a season of survival mode — the work is to repair the foundation, gently and honestly, so closeness can become possible again.
Life transitions, together
New parenthood, illness, career upheaval, blended families, the empty nest, midlife re-evaluations. Couples need different things from each other in different seasons, and that recalibration deserves support.
Working with the relationship in the room
In couples work, the client is not either of you on your own — it is the relationship the two of you are creating together. My role is to help that relationship become more visible, more honest, and more capable of holding both of you.
Neutral, not on a side
A good couples therapist is allied to the relationship, not to either partner. My job is to keep the room balanced — so the work is fair, both of you feel heard, and neither of you leaves a session feeling outnumbered.
Patterns before people
Most relational pain isn’t caused by who either of you is — it’s caused by the loop the two of you have learned to run together. Misattunement, rupture, and the slow work of repair are part of every long relationship. We name the pattern first, then work with it. That alone often changes a great deal.
Practical, repeatable tools
Insight matters, but it isn’t enough on its own. You will leave sessions with concrete tools for repair, communication and de-escalation — things you can actually use in the kitchen on a Tuesday night, not just describe in theory.
Early patterns, present relationships
Many of the patterns that shape our adult relationships were formed early in life within our families of origin. We gently explore how these early experiences can unconsciously shape who we are drawn to, how we respond in conflict, and what feels familiar in connection — bringing old patterns into awareness so they can begin to shift.
“The quality of our relationships determines the quality of our lives.”— Esther Perel
A gentle path forward, together
The decision to come to couples therapy is rarely an easy one. Here is what to expect, so the unknown becomes a little more known before you arrive.
- 01
A free 15-minute connection call
A short, no-cost phone call so you can hear my voice, ask any questions, and feel out whether we might be a good fit. Fit matters in couples work — perhaps more than in any other kind of therapy — and this is a gentle, low-stakes way to begin. Either partner can make the first call. There is no expectation to book afterwards.
- 02
Your first session, together
A 75-minute session — a little longer than our usual time, so there is room to meet the two of you and the relationship between you without rushing. We make space for what is bringing you here, how each of you is experiencing it, and what you would like the work to do for you both. Everything you share is held with full confidentiality, and both of you will be heard.
- 03
Ongoing sessions, at your pace
From there, sessions are 60 minutes. Most couples begin with sessions every week or two while we build understanding and momentum, then ease into a longer rhythm as new patterns settle in. The work is collaborative — we move at the pace that feels right for the two of you — and along the way you will learn practical, repeatable tools for communication, repair and reconnection that you can use long after sessions end.
The practical details
Fees
- First session
$350 inc. GST - Subsequent sessions
$280 inc. GST
Where
In person at 58 Ballinger Road, Buderim on the Sunshine Coast.
Online by secure video, or by phone, across Australia and New Zealand.
Begin with a 15-minute call
Coming to therapy together is a step few couples take lightly. If you would like to feel out whether this work might be right for you, the first move is a free 15-minute phone call — no pressure, no commitment, just a chance to ask questions and get a sense of fit.