Considering Divorce?

Discernment Counseling for Couples on the Brink of Divorce

If you or your spouse are considering divorce but are not completely sure that’s the best path, you are in a tough spot. Discernment Counseling is designed for you. It’s a chance to slow down, take a breath, and look at your options for your marriage.

Discernment Counseling is a new way of helping couples where one person is “leaning out” of the relationship—and is not sure that regular marriage counseling would help — and the other is "leaning in”—that is, interested in rebuilding the marriage.

The counselor will help you decide whether to try to restore your marriage to health by attending counseling, move toward divorce, or take a time out and decide later.

The goal is for you to gain clarity and confidence about a direction, based on a deeper understanding of your relationship and its future possibilities.

The goal is not to solve your marital problems but to see if they are solvable. You will each be treated with compassion and respect, no matter how you are feeling about your marriage at the moment. No bad guys and good guys. Your therapist does not push for one decision or another, but is invested in helping you to make a mindful and intentional decision about your marriage.

You will come in as a couple, but the most important work occurs in the one-to-one conversations with the counselor. Why? Because you are starting in different places.

The counselor respects your reasons for divorce while trying to open up the possibility of restoring the marriage to health.

The counselor emphasizes the importance of each of you seeing your own contributions to the problems and the possible solutions. This will be useful in future relationships, even if this one ends.

Number of Sessions: A maximum of 5 counseling sessions. The first session is usually 2 hours, and the subsequent sessions are 1.5 or 2 hours.

Sessions are offered in Person in Denver, CO, and via telehealth in Colorado, Texas, Illinois, and Arkansas.