Why is Premarital Counseling Important?
You’ve gotten engaged. Now what?
Congratulations! You’re engaged! In the swirl of excitement over planning a wedding, picking out dresses and a venue, someone may have asked about premarital counseling. Are you going to do it? Who with? How long should it be? How do you know if it will benefit you and your spouse? According to an article published by Carlson, in Family Journal (2012), premarital counseling can be associated with lower divorce rates and higher quality satisfaction. Here are a few reasons why premarital counseling can be integral for your marriage.
Premarital counseling can help prevent divorce.
No one gets married with the intention of getting divorced. However, situations and circumstances may come up that can cause real stress and strain on the relationship. Premarital counseling is important because a trained therapist can work with your unique relational dynamic to help explore potential issues in the relationship. Receiving helpful tools to navigate difficult conversations can be the difference in staying together and getting divorced. With any serious decision, you want to make sure you complete your due diligence.
Premarital counseling can help deal with baggage.
In relationships, the past doesn’t always stay in the past. Premarital counseling can provide a safe and empathetic environment to unpack past baggage that could interfere with intimacy in the relationship. Whether it’s past relationships or destructive habits, you do not want to wait to get to the center of these issues. Baggage may get a bad rap, but baggage is simply something that you’re still carrying. Premarital counseling allows you as a couple to explore and resolve these issues in a respectful way. This can ensure a peaceful transition from singlehood to marriage.
Examples of baggage you and your fiance may need to unpack:
- Previous relationships (including communication and expectations in the future)
- Financial debt (and how this will be handled after marriage)
- Past trauma (including any form of abuse)
- Broken relationships with family members
Premarital counseling can help clarifying roles in marriage.
Everyone has their own ideas about who should do what in a marriage. These topics may have come up in dating conversations, however, when you’re engaged, understanding who does what becomes increasingly more important. Roles can be as varied as the couple. Conversations on roles can be more expansive than just who is bringing home the bacon. As a couple, it can be beneficial to explore things you may not have thought of like: who will be in charge of the budget? How will chores be divided equitably? How will we decide on vacations and holidays? Remember, premarital counseling is important because it can provide clarity, not force conformity or rigidity. Counseling can open the door for necessary conversations that need to be had.
Now what: Schedule premarital counseling
Okay, you’re sold on the idea of premarital counseling. You’ve come to realize how important premarital counseling is to your future marriage. How do you find a therapist? SEVN Therapy Co. makes it so easy. We offer premarital counseling packages that can take the guesswork out of finding and securing a therapist with your availability. With both in-person and virtual options available with me or any of our other licensed therapists. SEVN can provide the security you need to ensure that your marriage starts off on the right track. Schedule your initial session with me here, via teletherapy or an in-person session, or call us at 817-778-0522.
Alicia Williams, LPC-Associate
Supervised by Erin James, LPC-S
