I Won't Ever Forget That First Desperate Phone Call From Mario

I can still hear the anguish in his voice as he asked in his initial phone call

Can you save my marriage?

His wife Sarah had had enough of his angry outbursts and grumpiness and had asked him to leave. He was devastated, they had 3 young daughters, his family, was his whole world.

Sarah reluctantly agreed to come along to counselling.

Mario and Sarah had drifted apart as often happens in relationships. Life gets busy, they both were working fulltime and they had 3 young school age daughters to care for.

Their relationship was not a high priority for either of them. Their communication had broken down. There was a lot of talking ,yelling even but nobody was really listening to anybody. The relationship had become a battleground, they felt disconnected from each and as a consequence it all began to unravel.

Something had to give

Finally it was Sarah who had enough and asked Mario to leave. Therapy focused on creating a safe space for both of them as I coached them into a new way of communicating with each other. All of us yearn to be listened to, when we experience being fully heard one of our most primal needs are being met and we start to heal. This was certainly the case for Mario and Sarah.

As Sarah and Mario began to really listen to each other

It became safe to be vulnerable and express their innermost feelings. They found new ways to support each other as Sarah was able to express her grief at father’s recent passing and Mario began to open up about his fear of not being able to find ongoing work and support his family. Mario had been grappling with depression and anxiety for some months and this was part of the reason behind his previous angry out bursts.

It took hard work and commitment from both of them

Over quite a few sessions as Mario and Sarah rebuilt their relationship and fell in love all over again.

They realised that their intimate relationship had to become a priority if they were to move forward, that they could no longer take each for granted and that they had to find ways to put fun back into their lives.

Their relationship underwent a beautiful transformation

They left therapy well equipped with tools to help them weather the inevitable challenges that life would bring.

Timeline Of a Reconciliation

• 04/01/17

  January

  Sarah reluctantly agreed to come along to counselling

  

  Mario and Sarah had drifted apart as often happens in relationships. Life gets busy, they both were working fulltime and they had 3 young school age daughters to care for.

  Their relationship was not a high priority for either of them. Their communication had broken down. There was a lot of talking ,yelling even but nobody was really listening to anybody. The relationship had become a battleground, they felt disconnected from each and as a consequence it all began to unravel.

• 12/02/17

  February

  Something had to give

  

  Finally it was Sarah who had enough and asked Mario to leave. Therapy focused on creating a safe space for both of them as I coached them into a new way of communicating with each other. All of us yearn to be listened to, when we experience being fully heard one of our most primal needs are being met and we start to heal. This was certainly the case for Mario and Sarah.

• 22/03/17

  March

  It took hard work and commitment from both of them

  

  Over quite a few sessions as Mario and Sarah rebuilt their relationship and fell in love all over again.

  They realised that their intimate relationship had to become a priority if they were to move forward, that they could no longer take each for granted and that they had to find ways to put fun back into their lives.

• 12/04/17

  April

  Their relationship underwent a beautiful transformation

  

  They left therapy well equipped with tools to help them weather the inevitable challenges that life would bring.