Relationships change shape over time, and so does the support that helps them. Whether you’re preparing for a wedding, working through something in a long marriage, or trying to get clarity on whether to stay or go, our therapists tailor sessions to where you actually are, we’ll never offer a one-size-fits-all approach.
Clinically reviewed by William Schroeder, LPC, NCC, co-founder of Just Mind. Last reviewed October 25, 2026.
Serving Austin Since 2007
A locally owned Austin group practice staffed by experienced clinicians with 10 to 30 years in the field, available online and in person.
- EMDR-Certified
- LGBTQIA + Informed
- Trauma-Informed
Clinicians
LPC, LCSW, LMFT, PsyD, PhD
What We Treat
Trauma, Anxiety, Depression, ADHD & Neurodivergence, Grief & Loss, Couples & Relationships, and More
Insurance
Aetna, Curative, EHN, Harbor Health, Nomi Health, Sana, Self Pay: $145-215 per session with superbills provided
Availability
Available 7 days a week, evening and weekend appointments, for telehealth and in-person in South Austin & North Austin.
Awards & Recognition
Best Counseling Center in Austin 2026 (Austin-American Statesman & Austin Monthly), Runner-up 2025 (Austin Fit Magazine), Finalist Customer Experience (Greater Austin Business Awards). The New York Times, Harvard Business Review, AP News, Health.com, CBS Austin.
Premarital Counseling
Engaged? Moving in together? Planning a future together before there’s a ring involved? Premarital counseling is for couples who are doing well and want to stay that way. We work on the habits and communication skills that keep a relationship steady under pressure, before pressure arrives: kids, money, careers, in-laws. Couples who do premarital work are 30% less likely to divorce (Stanley et al., 2006).
Marriage Counseling
Every marriage has rough patches. The couples who come out the other side aren’t the ones who avoided conflict, they’re the ones who learned how to repair after it. That’s what marriage counseling is for.
Our work is about helping both of you feel heard, slowing down the cycle that keeps tripping you up, and giving you concrete tools for the next time something goes sideways at the dinner table.
When is it time to seek out marriage counseling?
If you’re having the same fights over and over, feeling distant, or struggling with trust, it’s worth talking to a therapist. You don’t need to wait until things are falling apart.
Are you ready to get started? Get matched with a marriage counselor today!
Rebuilding After Infidelity
Any of these feel familiar
- You're checking your partner's phone, inbox, or calendar in ways you never did before.
- You're the one who stepped out and don't know how to be useful now that it's known.
- You've both agreed to try, and you don't know what trying actually looks like.
- You keep having the same conversation about the affair without it moving anywhere.
- You're months in and the hurt partner's body still won't settle.
Discovery is a trauma
Your nervous system now treats the person you relied on for safety as a potential source of threat. That's why you can't stop checking the phone, re-reading old texts, or replaying the moment you found out. These are not failures of will. They are what the body does when attachment has been ruptured.
The first part of this work is nervous-system stabilization: tools to come down from vigilance so you can think clearly about what you want. We do that before anything else.
You're carrying the aftermath of two realities
The one where the affair made sense to you at the time, and the one you're sitting in now. Grief about what you did. Defensiveness about why. Confusion about what you actually want now that it's in the open.
Your job in this work is specific. Not just apology. Transparency, accountability, and the kind of high-cost gestures over time that Janis Abrahms Spring calls earning sincere forgiveness. We'll walk you through what that actually looks like week to week.
Two frameworks, used together
Our work draws on Esther Perel's reframing of the affair as a crisis of meaning as much as a breach of contract, and Janis Abrahms Spring's practical sequence for rebuilding trust through action.
We layer somatic and polyvagal-informed co-regulation on top, because trust is not just a cognitive agreement. It is a felt sense in the body that this person is safe. Rebuilding that takes nervous-system work alongside the conversations.
Stabilize
Bring the hurt partner's nervous system down from vigilance. Slow the involved partner's defensiveness. Agree on what safety looks like for right now.
Make sense
Map the story of the affair without re-litigating details. Both of you understand what it meant and what it didn't, enough to decide what comes next.
Rebuild
The weekly trust-rebuilding practices from Spring's work, paired with a new kind of connection the Gottman and EFT research shows holds up.
Some couples do this work and stay together. Some do it and separate well, with less damage to themselves and any children. Either outcome is a success if you got there with clarity instead of chaos.
Divorce Counseling
Not every relationship story ends with staying together. Divorce counseling helps you get there with clarity instead of chaos, whether the outcome is rebuilding the relationship or separating in a way that doesn’t leave lasting damage.
We’re not here to talk you into or out of anything. Our job is to help you and your partner communicate clearly enough to make an informed decision, and to support you through whatever comes next.
Our divorce counseling covers:
- Getting clear on whether reconciliation is realistic or wanted.
- Untangling the difference between a rough patch and an ending.
- Communicating decisions and next steps without it turning into another fight.
- Navigating separation logistics as a team where possible (e.g. finances, living arrangements, telling family).
- Co-parenting groundwork (if kids are part of the picture).
If you’re past “we need to fix this” and into “we need to figure out what happens next,” divorce counseling can help you get there with clarity and support.
If one of you is leaning out and the other wants to keep trying, discernment counseling can help you choose a direction before committing to couples therapy.
Get Matched With the Right Couples Therapist
Every relationship is different. We’ll match you and your partner with a therapist who fits how you both communicate.
Not sure where to start? We’ll guide you toward the right therapy approach.
Other Ways We Work With Couples
Beyond the three stages above, we also tailor couples work to specific challenges and session formats. Not every couple fits one of these buckets, and that’s fine. We’ll match you with the right fit.
ADHD Couples Counseling
ADHD can impact relationships in unique ways, often leading to misunderstandings, frustration, and emotional disconnect. Our therapists help couples develop practical strategies to improve communication, manage daily challenges, and strengthen their bond.
High-Conflict Couples Counseling
Frequent arguments and emotional tension can take a toll on any relationship. High-conflict couples counseling helps break the cycle of recurring fights, teaching partners how to resolve disagreements in a healthier, more productive way.
Rebuilding After Infidelity
Betrayal is an attachment injury: the nervous system stops reading your partner as safe. Our affair-recovery work draws on Esther Perel and Janis Abrahms Spring, with somatic tools so trust gets rebuilt in the body, not just agreed to in conversation. Learn more about our approach to infidelity →
Intensive Couples Counseling
For couples in crisis or those who want faster progress, intensive couples counseling offers longer, more focused sessions over a shorter period. This approach is designed to help couples work through challenges more quickly and effectively.
Sex-Positive Couples Counseling
Sex and intimacy are important parts of a relationship. Sex-positive couples counseling provides a judgment-free space to explore concerns, improve communication, and enhance intimacy in a way that aligns with both partners’ needs and values.
Too Busy or Long-Distance? Try Online Couples Counseling
For those with busy schedules or couples living in different cities or time zones, we offer virtual therapy sessions that provide the same benefits as in-person counseling, making support accessible no matter where you are.
Help Us Stop Fighting
Our Approach to Relationship Healing
Our therapists use research-backed methods, matched to the couple in the room. No two couples get the same treatment plan. Most of our work draws on two of the most rigorously studied approaches in the field, the Gottman Method and Emotionally Focused Therapy. Here’s what each one looks like and how we decide which fits you.
Gottman Method Couples Therapy
The Gottman Method comes out of more than 40 years of research by Drs. John and Julie Gottman at their Love Lab, where they studied thousands of couples and identified the patterns that predict whether a relationship thrives or unravels. It’s one of the most structured, skills-rich approaches in couples therapy, and a favorite for couples who want concrete tools instead of vague advice.
In session, we use the Gottmans’ Sound Relationship House framework to assess your relationship across seven levels, from knowing each other’s inner world to creating shared meaning. We also help you spot and dismantle the Four Horsemen (criticism, contempt, defensiveness, and stonewalling), the communication patterns the Gottmans’ research has repeatedly linked to relationship breakdown.
Often a strong fit for: high-conflict couples, premarital couples, couples rebuilding after a betrayal, and anyone who wants practical skills with homework between sessions.
Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)
EFT was developed by the late Dr. Sue Johnson and is grounded in attachment science: the research showing that adult love, like the bond between a parent and child, is fundamentally an emotional attachment. When that bond feels secure, couples can handle almost anything. When it feels threatened, even small disagreements turn into the kind of fights that leave you lying awake at 2 a.m.
EFT unfolds in three stages: de-escalating the negative cycle fueling your fights, accessing the softer emotions underneath (fear, loneliness, longing) so partners can hear each other, and consolidating the new, more secure way of connecting. More than three decades of peer-reviewed outcome research show that roughly 70 to 75% of couples move out of distress with EFT, and gains tend to hold up years after therapy ends.
Often a strong fit for: couples stuck in the same fight on loop, partners who feel like roommates, recovery from attachment injuries and affairs, and anyone who wants to feel close again.
PACT (Psychobiological Approach to Couple Therapy)
PACT integrates neuroscience, attachment theory, and biology to help couples understand how their nervous systems interact. It’s especially useful when big emotional reactions happen before either of you can catch them.
Curious about which approach is right for you? We’ll help you find the best fit.
Our Commitment to Every Couple
At Just Mind, we believe that every couple deserves support, no matter their background, identity, or life experiences. Our goal is to create a welcoming and comfortable space where all couples feel heard, understood, and supported.
We proudly work with:
- LGBTQ+ couples
- Interracial and intercultural relationships
- Partners navigating religious or cultural differences
- Couples from various socioeconomic backgrounds
- Military families and long-distance relationships
Our goal is to provide a safe and non-judgmental environment where all couples feel respected, heard, and empowered to build healthier relationships.
Unsure Which Therapy Is Right for You? Book a Free Consultation
What Our Clients Are Saying
Getting Started with Marriage Counseling
Marriage counseling isn’t rehashing the same fights on repeat, it’s practical tools that create real change, no matter how many years you’ve been married. Here’s how it works:
- Assessment: We’ll have an open conversation about your relationship and what you want to achieve.
- Core Issues: We’ll identify the patterns driving conflict, whether it’s communication, trust, or distance.
- Solutions: We’ll work through evidence-based strategies to strengthen your bond and communication.
- Practice: We’ll guide you with tools you’ll actually use between sessions.
- Support: We’ll provide ongoing check-ins as you progress
Some couples see change in a few sessions; others go longer. We’ll tailor the pace to you!
Get Started Today: Rebuild, Reconnect, and Strengthen Your Relationship!
Meet Our Marriage Counselors
Not sure which therapist is the best match? We’ll help you find the right one!
Have a question? We have answers.
What’s the difference between marriage counseling and couples therapy?
Marriage counseling typically focuses on issues within a marriage, while couples therapy is broader and applies to all types of relationships, including dating, engaged, or cohabiting couples. Both approaches aim to improve communication, resolve conflicts, and strengthen the relationship.
When should we consider couples counseling?
If you’re having the same fights over and over, feeling distant, or struggling with trust, it’s time to talk to a therapist. You don’t need to wait until things are falling apart. Counseling can help prevent bigger problems down the road.
What if my partner doesn’t want to go to counseling?
It’s common for one partner to be unsure about therapy. You can start on your own, and many times, your partner will see the benefits and join later. We can also offer guidance on how to approach the conversation with them.
How long does couples counseling take?
It depends on your situation. Some couples make great progress in a few sessions, while others benefit from longer-term support. We’ll work together to create a plan that fits your needs.
Can therapy really help if we’re considering divorce?
Yes. Therapy can help couples gain clarity on their relationship, whether the goal is to rebuild the partnership or separate amicably. Many couples find that therapy helps them communicate more effectively and make informed decisions about their future.
Learn more about how we can help couples through divorce.
Is couples therapy covered by insurance?
Insurance coverage for couples therapy varies depending on your provider and policy. Some insurance plans cover therapy if it’s deemed medically necessary, while others do not cover relationship counseling. We recommend checking with your insurance provider to see if Just Mind Counseling is in-network or if your plan offers partial reimbursement for out-of-network services.
If you have any questions about coverage, check out our rates and insurance and feel free to contact our office, and we’d be happy to assist you.
How successful is couples therapy?
Couples therapy has been shown to be highly effective, with research suggesting that 70-75% of couples who engage in therapy experience significant improvements in their relationship. Success depends on factors such as commitment to the process, willingness to implement learned strategies, and finding a therapist who aligns with your needs. Evidence-based approaches like Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) and The Gottman Method have particularly high success rates in helping couples improve communication, resolve conflicts, and build stronger emotional connections.
How much does couples counseling cost?
Couples sessions are private pay because insurance does not cover relationship work. Fees depend on the clinician’s experience level, and extended sessions are available if you want to move faster. Exact rates are on our Rates and Insurance page.
How often should we come?
Weekly or every other week works best in the beginning, when you are learning new ways to talk to each other. Many couples move to monthly check-ins once things are steadier.
What approaches do your couples therapists use?
Most of our couples clinicians are trained in Emotionally Focused Therapy, the Gottman Method, or both. EFT works with the attachment needs under a fight; Gottman focuses on practical skills for conflict and connection. Your therapist will explain what fits your situation.
Where To Find A Therapist In Austin, TX
Our Just Mind Counseling has two physical locations in Austin, TX:
Relationship Resources for Couples at Any Stage
Below are some posts on marriages and couples that may be helpful to you in your quest to learn more for yourself or those you love.
Is Couples Counseling not right for you? Explore our other therapy services.
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- ADHD Counseling
- ADHD Testing
- Adult Counseling
- Affordable Counseling
- Anxiety Counseling
- Anxious Attachment Therapy
- Autism Counseling, Acceptance & Support
- Autism Testing
- Child Counseling & Play Therapy
- Childhood Trauma Counseling
- Cofounder Counseling
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy CBT
- DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy)
- Dating & Relationships Counseling
- Depression Counseling
- Discernment Counseling
- EMDR Therapy
- Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)
- Employee Mental Wellness
- Family & Parenting Counseling
- Food Struggles & Body Image Counseling
- Gottman Method Therapy
- Grief Counseling
- Immigration Hardship Evaluations
- Individual Counseling & Coaching
- Internal Family Systems Therapy
- LGBTQ+ Counseling
- LGBTQ+ Couples Counseling
- Marriage & Couples Counseling
- Multicultural Counseling
- Neurodiversity Affirming Therapy
- Personal Growth Counseling
- Postpartum Depression Counseling
- OCD Therapy
- Pregnancy and Perinatal Therapy
- Premarital Counseling
- Psychological Assessments
- PTSD & Trauma Counseling
- Self-Esteem Therapy
- Single Session Therapy
- Somatic Therapy & Somatic Experiencing
- Spanish-Speaking Therapy
- Stress Management Therapy
- Teen Counseling
- Telehealth & Online Counseling
- Therapy for First Responders
- Therapy for Men
- Therapy for Women