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Couples & partners therapy in Chicago and across Illinois
Every relationship develops patterns. Some bring you closer; others leave you feeling misunderstood or far apart. Together we’ll understand one another, communicate more openly, and work through challenges with curiosity instead of blame — and maybe find the flame again.
Secure video · Gottman principles & EFT · In-network with BCBS PPO & Aetna PPO
Does any of this sound familiar?
Choose one to read more about the pattern and how therapy can help.
- Same fight, different dayFrequent, repetitive arguments and communication that goes in circles.
- Growing apartEmotional distance, differences in intimacy, or feeling like roommates.
- Trust after betrayalMaking sense of what happened and deciding what comes next.
- Not seeing eye to eyeMismatched life goals, values, or fears about the future.
- Pressure from outsideFamily or cultural pressure, financial stress, and parenting challenges.
- Big life hardshipsFertility, family, relocation, or other major transitions.
- Sex & desire differencesMismatched desire, pressure, or a sex life that has faded.
- Mental loadUneven household planning, chores, and the default-parent role.
- Jealousy & insecurityReassurance seeking, fear of abandonment, checking.
- In-laws & familyBoundaries with parents and extended family.
Every kind of partnership is welcome
We work with couples navigating major life transitions, neurodiverse relationships (such as ADHD or autism), LGBTQ+ relationships, and the complexities that come when partners have different cultural backgrounds, values, or expectations.
Intercultural & interfaith
LGBTQ+ couples
Neurodiverse relationships
Couples in transition
How we’ll work
Sessions draw on Gottman principles, Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), and other relational, interpersonal, and family-dynamics approaches. Both partners join by secure video and must be located in Illinois at the time of session.
Insurance
In-network — BCBS PPO & Aetna PPO
Coming soon — UnitedHealthcare
No insurance? — Limited reduced-fee spots per therapist
How couples therapy works
You don’t have to be in crisis
Couples come to therapy for many reasons: to communicate better before a big step, to get through a rough season, to rebuild after a breach of trust, or to decide together whether to stay. Starting earlier often makes the work easier.
What the first sessions look like
The first session together is about understanding your relationship: its history, its strengths, and what brought you in. Some couples work includes brief individual check-ins. Under TCC’s no-secrets policy, anything shared there may be brought back into joint sessions. From there, we set goals together.
The approaches we draw on
The Gottman Method, built on decades of research with couples, focuses on friendship, managing conflict, and shared meaning. Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) helps partners understand the emotional cycle beneath their conflict and build a more secure bond. Sessions combine both, with attention to culture, family, and identity.
Couples we work with
Married and unmarried partners, LGBTQ+ couples, intercultural and interfaith couples, neurodiverse couples, and partners navigating big transitions. Marriage counseling and couples therapy follow the same principles, so you don’t need to be married.
When couples therapy isn’t the right fit
Couples therapy assumes both partners can speak freely and safely. If there is active domestic violence, couples counseling isn’t safe or appropriate. Individual support and safety planning come first, and we can help connect you with the right resources. The Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline is 877-863-6338.
Online couples therapy across Illinois
Both partners join by secure video and must be located in Illinois at the time of the session. You can join from the same room or from different places, which helps for busy schedules and long-distance stretches. TCC is in-network with BCBS PPO and Aetna PPO, and the first step is a free 15-minute consult, which you’re welcome to join together.
Questions couples ask
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Start with a free 15-minute consult — couples are welcome to join together. It’s a no-pressure way to ask questions and see if this feels right for both of you.
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No. The relationship is the client — the goal is understanding, not a verdict.
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Yes. Rebuilding trust after betrayal is one of the areas we work with.
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Mostly, yes. They use the same approaches, and you don’t need to be married to start.
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Yes. What one partner shares privately isn’t automatically kept from the other. Read more about how this works →
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Couples therapy can help you get clear, whether you stay together or separate. As a general policy, we don’t continue seeing one partner individually after couples work ends, so your therapist can stay neutral. We’ll help each of you find individual support if you need it.
Start with one conversation — together.
A free, no-pressure 15-minute phone call. Ask about fees, insurance, or how we work.
Book a free 15-min consult Join the waitlist