Couples Group Programs

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Congratulations! You are having a new baby – but please don’t forget - you also have a marriage!

7 out of 10 couples will experience a significant decline in relationship happiness when they transition from being a couple, to being parents. In addition, research has demonstrated that when mum and dad are in this relationship transition and potential decline within the first year, there is an absolutely negative affect on the quality of the parent / child interaction, relationship and child personality development. But don't worry, we have your back.

This workshop is a research based and evaluated program for expecting and new parents experiencing the transition to parenthood. Developed by the relationship masters Dr. Julie Schwartz Gottman and Dr. John Gottman.

You will:

• Learn how to stay connected to your partner during the transition from being a couple to being a family.
• Learn how to cope with the changes brought about by bringing your baby home.
• Learn how to promote the development of a healthier baby and help them in their emotional, social, cognitive, and physical development.
• Learn how to deal with the “baby blues” and decrease the chance of post partum depression. Both for Mum and Dad!
• Learn how to increase friendship and intimacy.
• Decrease potential conflict and hostility.
• Increase valued and accepted involvement from Dad

Couples who completed the Bringing Baby Home Couple’s Workshop:

• Had a markedly less incidence of observable signs of Post Natal Depression than that of couples who didn’t attend a BBH Workshop.
• Fathers who attended the BBH Workshop reported being more involved in parenting and feeling more satisfied and appreciated for their parental contributions.
• Parents who attended BBH demonstrated greater sensitivity and responsiveness to their babies
• Babies of parents who attended BBH expressed more smiling and laughter during family play time.
• Parents who attended BBH demonstrated better co-parenting abilities by being able to work together more positively.

Feel free to call us today to enquire about our next Bringing Baby Home workshop, or ask more about our couples therapy services and how we can help you be the best team you can be.

Mind Mode is offering The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work, run by our primary psychologist Cathy Hayes, this September. 

This workshop has been designed for couples in committed relationships and aims to assist them in understanding, and applying the research about what makes marriages work, versus what makes marriages deteriorate and ultimately fail. 

This psycho-educational skills workshop is based on the four decades of groundbreaking research by Dr. John Gottman and his colleagues, described in their New York Times Bestseller The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work.

The 7 Principles Workshop is a skills based workshop making it appropriate for relationships at any stage. The workshop is presented in a structured format, with 7 modules that each contain a presentation, followed by practical activities and exercises.

Sessions are aimed at:

• Gaining skills in managing conflict constructively
• Gaining skills to address perpetual and solvable problems
• Improving friendship, fondness, admiration
• Enhancing romance and intimacy
• Ensuring these skills and foundations for a relationship are maintained over time 

Please be aware that due to the group format specific ‘couples counselling’ does not occur. Rather the focus remains on skill development, with the hope that the skills learnt will help the couple to communicate more effectively themselves. This means that the group is fantastic for anyone wanting to build or strengthen their relationship however, relationships with a volatile nature that present safety concerns are not appropriate for this course.

The exercises themselves will be monitored and advice and help given. These activities are often fun, and include some guidance on how to do deeper work with each other, as well as resolving conflict healthily and in a way that grows a relationship, rather than damaging it.

Call to book before 18th August and secure early bird pricing!