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SMB COUNSELLING GROUP

Couples Therapy

Rebuild Your Foundation of Love, Trust, & Connection

In-person couples counselling in Bedford. Online sessions available across Nova Scotia and Ontario.

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Couples therapy can help you and your partner:

Improve Communication

Rebuild Trust

Deepen Connection

Resolve Conflicts

“How did we get here”

Small disagreements or misunderstandings can snowball into deeply rooted conflicts, fueled by overwhelming emotions. The mind becomes trapped in a cycle of fear, replaying past hurts and projecting worst-case scenarios for the future. This can impair your ability to effectively communicate and problem solve within the relationship.

We help you move beyond the conflicts and patterns that are keeping you stuck.

Happy senior man and woman old retired couple walking and holding hands on a beach at sunset

Are you struggling with...

  • Feeling disconnected & unsure of a future with your partner?
  • Repeating conflict and adding to unresolved emotional wounds?
  • Recovering from betrayal?
  • Connecting & communicating in your relationship?
  • Anxious or avoidant attachment styles?
  • Navigating parenting styles and challenges?

Couples therapy can help you develop the relational skills to solve problems, communicate better, and grow closer.

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SMB COUNSELLING GROUP

Couples Therapy Can Help With:

Effective communication is the key to a healthy relationship. Yet, it’s a skill that many struggle with. In therapy, we provide actionable tools and techniques to enhance your communication style using empathy, active listening, and boundary setting. By learning to express yourselves authentically and understand each other’s perspectives, you’ll create deeper intimacy and connection in your relationship.
Every relationship goes through rough patches, but it’s how you navigate them that defines your connection. In therapy, we explore the dynamics of your relationship, identifying areas of strength and areas for growth. By fostering open communication and understanding each other’s needs, we aim to strengthen the foundation of your bond.
Parenting can be both rewarding and challenging, especially when partners have different approaches. In couples therapy, we facilitate discussions around parenting values, discipline strategies, and co-parenting dynamics. Through mutual respect, compromise, and collaboration, we empower you to navigate parenthood as a unified team, creating a supportive environment for your children to thrive.
Life is a series of ups and downs, but they don’t have to derail your relationship. Whether you’re facing job changes, moving to a new city, or adding children to the mix, these moments can either divide or unite you. In couples therapy, we explore strategies for adapting together, fostering resilience, and practicing holding space for all emotions. You’ll not only weather the storms but also become stronger, with a deeper appreciation for each other.
Conflict is a natural part of any relationship, but it’s how you handle it that matters most. In therapy, we provide a safe space to explore the root of issues, express emotions, and find mutual solutions. Whether you’re struggling with trust issues, intimacy concerns, or past emotional wounds resurfacing, we can support you.
Take the first step to feeling closer
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ABOUT US

Why Work With
SMB Counselling Group

Flexibility

We understand your need for support and the courage it took to reach out. We respond quickly and will get you in for an appointment within our 2 week guarantee. Our team works hard to make therapy accessible removing financial barriers by offering direct billing and collaborating with insurance providers and government programs.

Care

At our clinic, we prioritize your well-being. We go above and beyond for our clients, recognizing the demands of busy modern lives by offering appointment times outside of traditional office hours. We cater to your needs, not to a company schedule.

Expertise

Our team has a diverse set of skills and abilities to ensure you receive therapy that is right for you. We are helpers first, committed to guiding you through your mental health journey with compassion and expertise.

Meet Our Team

COUPLES THERAPY IN BEDFORD

Match With A Couples Therapist

Choose from a variety of professional and experienced relationship counsellors in Nova Scotia. Book a Free Consultation to find the right fit for you.

Jennifer Banks

Registered Counselling Therapist
Registered Psychotherapist

Anne Dobson

Registered Counselling Therapist

Brennan Poirier

Clinical Social Worker

Meet Our Team

SMB COUNSELLING GROUP

How We Help Couples

As an experienced team, we offer a wide range of support services and modalities, catering to diverse populations. Book a Free Consultation and let us help you find the therapeutic approach that works best for you.
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Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)

This approach addresses communication issues by understanding and reshaping the emotional bonds between partners. It focuses on identifying negative patterns and replacing them with healthier ways of relating. Through EFT, couples learn to express their needs and emotions more effectively, leading to deeper connection and understanding.

The Gottman Method

Developed by Drs. John and Julie Gottman, this method emphasizes strengthening friendship, managing conflicts, and creating shared meaning in relationships. It uses research-based interventions to enhance communication skills, develop trust, and promote intimacy. Couples learn practical tools to manage conflicts constructively and build a strong foundation.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

CBT focuses on identifying and changing negative thought patterns and behaviours that contribute to relationship problems. Couples learn to challenge unhelpful beliefs, develop effective communication strategies, and implement problem-solving skills. CBT helps couples break destructive cycles and develop healthier ways of interacting.

Integrative Therapy

Integrative therapy combines elements from different therapeutic approaches based on the specific needs of the couple. It may incorporate techniques from various modalities listed above. By integrating diverse approaches, therapists tailor treatment to address the unique dynamics and challenges within the relationship, promoting holistic healing and growth.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

EMDR Therapy is primarily used to address trauma and its associated symptoms. It involves recalling distressing memories while engaging in stimulation, such as eye movements or tapping. This process aims to reprocess traumatic memories, reducing their emotional impact and promoting healing. EMDR can be used when working with couples when one or more partners have past traumas that they would like to work on. This can also enhance the emotional connection for the couple as they support each other moving through this process.

Things Your Therapist Can't Say

By Jennifer M. Banks

So, you think you’ve got what it takes to create a truly remarkable relationship? Let me ask you this: what can you accomplish in just a few hours? Maybe you’d wax your vintage Pinto, teach your mischievous pup Spike to fetch, or whip up a killer coq au vin for date night. Sure, those are solid ways to spend your time—but what if you could transform your relationship from “meh” to”wowza”, building a deep emotional connection that will leave you both feeling unstoppable?

Sounds too good to be true? It’s not. Join Jennifer Banks, couples therapist and owner of SMB Counselling Group, as she takes you through the ins and outs of what really works in relationships, using raw, honest practical advice, while giving you a few laughs along the way.

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OUR APPROACH TO COUNSELLING

How Our Couples Therapy Works

We See You As A Couple First

Building trust is key; we create a safe space to discuss your challenges and goals and understand your conflict/attachment styles.

We Complete One Session With Each Person Individually

We work at your pace to understand the root of your struggles and identify what's important to you as an individual and as part of a partnership.

We Meet Together (As A Couple) During The Rest Of The Sessions

We create a plan with strategies to build a strong foundation navigating tension with ease and overcoming challenges as a team.

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COUPLES THERAPY IN BEDFORD

Frequently Asked Questions About Couples Counselling

It is recommended to attend sessions once a week for 4-6 weeks, depending on the couples, and then move to biweekly. Some couples require a few months of therapy, with check-ins as needed. Some couples prefer to stay with therapy on an ongoing basis.
You and your partner will notice that when conflicts arise, there is an absence of escalation. A new cycle is forming, one that is caring, and empathetic towards each other.
The first step in the counselling process is the relationship. When a therapist works with one member of a couple, there is a chance that an alliance can be built, which can affect the triad and the balance within that triad. Often, we have one of our therapists work with the couple, then one therapist for each member. So, three therapists are involved in supporting the couple.
There is a lot we can do. The first step is making an appointment and getting support from someone who is not family, a friend, or anyone else that already has a relationship with you. We are trained to help couples during their most vulnerable time, and we respect and can appreciate how difficult it is to ask for help.
No, we don’t know what is right or wrong for you! You do! We are going to support you to learn how to make decisions as a couple, and how to work out things together, with a calm, new communication cycle that works for the both of you.
As mentioned above, the process involves staying with the triad with the exception of one session individually in the beginning, to get a history for each member. Many couples notice a difference by the second month of therapy. That would include a commitment to weekly sessions. As well, sometimes the therapist will ask the couple to look for the cycle during the week, or will have a few things suggested that may help. Of course, every couple is different. The level of escalation or no escalation at all, matters in the process. As well, as how willing each participant is when in session.

Have more questions? Check out more FAQs or contact us.

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SMB COUNSELLING GROUP

How To Get Started

SMB Counselling Group in Nova Scotia offers in-person counselling from our Bedford office or online from anywhere in Nova Scotia and Ontario.

You can book a free phone consultation or appointment online using the buttons below. You can also send us a message or call us and we’ll book you in.

*Please note that some of our therapists cannot be scheduled
online. Please contact us.

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CALL OR TEXT US

(902) 266-3311

If you have questions or prefer to book an appointment through our contact form, send us a message. We will respond within one business day.

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COUPLES THERAPY IN BEDFORD

SMB Counselling Group

Bridge the gap from tension to togetherness.

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