Couples Counseling for Communication and Conflict in Minnesota
Online Across Minnesota · Emotionally Focused Therapy, Trained in Gottman Method
Money. The dishes. Whose turn it was. Why you are on your phone again. The topic changes every time. What happens between you does not.
One of you pushes to talk it out. The other shuts down. You've probably tried to fix this on your own, maybe more than once, and it keeps landing you both in the same place: alone, even in the same room.
At ForwardUs Counseling, I offer couples counseling for communication and conflict across Minnesota, from Minneapolis to St. Paul and beyond.
If This is You, You Are Not Broken. You Are Stuck in a Pattern.
The same argument keeps coming back, no matter what it's about
One of you keeps pushing to talk, the other keeps shutting down
You have stopped bringing up the things that matter
It rarely turns into a real fight anymore. It just goes quiet
From the outside, your relationship probably looks fine
Disagreements either blow up or go cold, nothing in between
You both end up feeling alone by the end of it, even when nothing was said
This pattern holds for about three out of four couples who experience it. It's what conflict resolution therapy exists to interrupt.
Why You Keep Having the Same Fight.
One of you reaches for the other and it comes out sounding like an attack. The other pulls back to keep things from getting worse, and it lands like walking away. Your reaching confirms their fear that they can never get it right. Their pulling back confirms your fear that you do not matter to them.
This is why the topic never seems to matter. Dishes, money, sex, whose turn it was, the pattern underneath stays the same no matter what starts it. It is also why learning to communicate better has not fixed it.
Researchers tested adding communication skills training to Emotionally Focused Therapy for disconnection and resentment and found it did not improve the results, because the pattern underneath the words is what needed to change.
What If My Partner Won’t Come to Couples Counseling?
This is usually the person who has been pulling back all along. Not because they don't care about the relationship. One partner arriving hesitant is common, and that hesitation is usually self-protection, not disinterest.
Nearly half of couples start therapy with one partner unsure and that usually shifts once they're actually in the room.
A free 15-minute consultation asks for exactly that: one conversation, not a commitment.
Meet Evon Inyang, MA, LAMFT
The fighting and the silence are what happens when you feel alone in the one place you're supposed to feel safest. I'm Evon, and this is exactly where I work.
I'm a Board-Licensed Associate Marriage and Family Therapist offering couples counseling for communication and conflict across Minnesota. I'm trained in Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy and Gottman couples therapy, Level 1, two evidence-based approaches built specifically for couples.
My style in session is active, direct, and willing to roll up my sleeves. I don't take sides. I notice the patterns between you, compassionately challenge you both, and name what's happening while you can still feel it. I also love to bring humor into the room when it fits, because if you can't laugh about the small stuff yet, that's usually part of what we're working on.
Couples I work with come in bracing for the same fight every time. They leave able to catch it before it takes over, and reach for each other instead of pulling away, long after our sessions end.
Trusted by Couples. Referred by Professionals.
Emotionally Focused Therapy has some of the strongest research behind it of any couples approach. Across studies, 70 to 75 percent of couples move from distress to recovery and the gains hold up to two years later.
Explore Our Services
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Expecting a Little One?
Prenatal and Pregnancy Counseling
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New Parents Stress?
Postpartum Counseling
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Getting Married Soon?
Premarital Counseling
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Should We Stay Together?
Discernment Counseling
Frequently Asked Questions About Couples Counseling in Minnesota
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That's common, and it's usually the one who's been pulling back all along. Nearly half of couples start with one partner unsure, and that hesitation typically shifts once they're actually in the room. The first step only asks for one conversation.
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When the same argument keeps happening, the real issue usually isn't the topic. One of you pushes to talk it out, the other pulls back, and that pattern is what keeps the fight going no matter what started it. Conflict resolution therapy for fighting couples works on that pattern directly.
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If you're asking that question, it's worth talking to someone. Many couples who reach out are not in crisis. You don't have to be falling apart to want the fighting or the silence, to stop.
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Yes. Sessions are online across Minnesota with evening and weekend availability, because most couples are already juggling work and everything else.
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No, ForwardUs Counseling is private-pay and out-of-network. That keeps your care off any insurance record and focused on you and your relationship rather than a diagnosis or billing code. If you have out-of-network benefits, I can provide a superbill you may submit to your insurer for possible partial reimbursement.
