Getting married in today’s time people often ask the question- ‘Why premarital counseling??’
Before you make your final arrangements for the wedding, be sure to place premarital counseling on your list. We live in a fast food economy. People want things now even if we have spent our entire lives looking for Mr. or Mrs. Right. In a world of varies ways in which we meet the one we love, it is so important to get the necessary tools to succeed in marriage.
Welcome to a series of articles focused on the purpose and importance of seeking premarital counseling sooner than later.
Let’s begin with the benefits of counseling before saying “I do”.
Pay me now or pay me later. Let’s face it. Statistics show that marriages have a 50% success rate. This means there are plenty of marriages that failed to invest the necessary time and attention to succeed in relationship. Spend plenty of time up front learning what the spoken and unspoken rules are in the relationship. It has been my 30 years in the business of helping couples that the more couples enter marriage with their eyes wide open, the higher their success rate.
Establish relationship tools. There are plenty of magazines and self-help books that speak of the better sex- better relationship or relationship surveys that improve connection or the perfect mate. Though there is nothing wrong with these items, there is no one interacting with you to check distortions of your reality. No one to challenge your thought process. In premarital counseling my clients find a safe space to confront distortions or perceptions that could be a stumbling block down the road.
Developing a Support system. More and more couples find their work and family lives overwhelming. We often live unbalanced. Let me clarify. We struggle to establish relationships that consistently encourage healthy relationship. More and more couples find themselves in marriage without a community to surround them. I believe just as it is said that it takes a community to raise a child…the same thing can be said of a marriage. Yes, there are community groups held in churches. Yes, there are marriage enrichment classes to engage, yet most of my couples still feel timid to call their pastor or group member to seek counsel. Connecting with counselor before marriage becomes a useful resource in the future.
We will continue this dialogue in future articles. Living with Purpose counseling is committed to encouraging healthy relationship before, during and after the various transitions individuals experience. To find out more about the 9 session premarital program, feel free to contact me.