Couples Therapy Intensives in Edmonds, WA
Find your way back to each other.
A two-day couples intensive for couples in midlife and beyond who feel distant, stuck, or more like roommates than partners. Deep, focused work in person in Edmonds, Washington, or online, with three months of follow-up support.
Serving Edmonds, Lynnwood, Shoreline, Mountlake Terrace, and the greater Seattle area, with online intensives for couples anywhere in Washington.
Not sure you both want to stay? Discernment counseling may be the better first step.
Is this right for you?
You've built a life together. But somewhere along the way, something shifted.
- Busy careers, raising kids, caring for aging parents, or a new stage like the empty nest or retirement has pulled you in different directions.
- The same arguments keep coming back, and nothing gets resolved.
- You live side by side but rarely feel truly close.
- Intimacy and your sexual connection have faded, or have become a source of tension.
- A hurt or a betrayal has left a distance neither of you wanted.
- You both want this relationship to work, and you're ready to do something different.
If this sounds familiar, an intensive offers the focused time and depth that weekly sessions often can't.
What is a couples intensive?
A couples intensive is focused couples therapy and marriage counseling delivered over two consecutive days instead of one hour a week. With 12 hours together, there's time to go beneath the surface, understand the patterns that keep you stuck, and practice new ways of reaching each other, without the stop-and-start of weekly sessions.
Each intensive is designed for one couple. The work is direct, compassionate, and practical. You'll leave with a clear understanding of what's been happening between you and a written plan for the months ahead.
How it works
- 1
Free fit call (20 minutes)
We talk together about what's happening and whether an intensive is a good fit.
- 2
Getting to know you
Each of you completes a private questionnaire and meets with me individually, so I understand both perspectives before we begin.
- 3
The intensive (2 days)
Two focused days, in person in my Edmonds office or online, about 9:30 to 4:30 each day, with breaks and time for lunch. Day 1 focuses on understanding your pattern. Day 2 focuses on repair, new skills, and your plan for the next chapter.
- 4
Follow-up (3 months)
A 20-minute check-in one week later and three 60-minute follow-up sessions over three months help the changes take root in everyday life.
What's included
- A free 20-minute fit call
- Private questionnaires and an individual session with each partner
- 12 hours of couples therapy over two days
- A take-home packet with your personalized 90-day reconnection plan
- A 20-minute check-in one week after the intensive
- Three 60-minute follow-up sessions over three months
Discernment Counseling
For couples where one partner isn't sure.
When one of you is leaning toward ending the relationship and the other wants to save it, regular couples therapy often doesn't help. Discernment counseling, offered in Edmonds and online across Washington, is designed for exactly this moment.
The goal isn't to save or end the relationship. It's to help you both gain clarity and confidence about what to do next. Together, we look at three paths:
- 1Keep things as they are for now
- 2Move toward separation or divorce
- 3Commit to a focused, six-month effort to rebuild the relationship, which may include a couples intensive
How it works:
- A 2-hour first session, with time together and time with each of you individually
- Up to four shorter follow-up sessions if you need more time to decide
- No pressure to reach a decision in a single session
- Respect for each partner's perspective, whether you're leaning in or leaning out
About Elizabeth
Elizabeth Gately, LICSW, MBA
I'm Elizabeth Gately, a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW) with an MBA, offering couples therapy and marriage counseling in Edmonds, Washington. For 16 years, I've provided therapy to individuals and couples. Today I focus on couples in midlife and beyond who want to feel close again after years of drift, hurt, or change.
My approach is warm and direct. I'll help you see the patterns that keep you stuck and practice new ways of being together. I'll be honest with each of you, because lasting change comes when each partner sees and owns their part. When you both want a deeper connection and are willing to work for it, I'll hold real hope for what's possible between you.
My path to this work ran through start-ups, business, research, and academia. I understand the pride that comes with professional success, and the toll it can quietly take on a relationship.
With training in sex and couples therapy, I welcome conversations about intimacy and sexual connection.
Training:
- Discernment Counseling
- Gottman Method
- Integrative Sex and Couples Certification Training
- Intensive Couples Therapy training
- Relational Life Therapy (RLT), Level 1
Fees and insurance
Two-day couples intensive
$4,500 in person · $4,200 online
The two-day intensive is offered as a complete package: $4,500 per couple in person in Edmonds, or $4,200 per couple online. It includes everything listed above: the fit call, individual sessions, 12 hours of couples therapy, your take-home plan, a 20-minute check-in one week later, and three 60-minute follow-up sessions over three months.
Discernment counseling
$450 first session · $280 per follow-up
Discernment counseling is priced separately: $450 for the 2-hour first session, which includes a prescreen session, and $280 for each 60–80 minute follow-up session, if needed.
Payment is due in full before the intensive. I'm an out-of-network provider and don't bill insurance directly. On request, I can provide a receipt (superbill) you may submit to your insurance, though reimbursement for intensives varies and isn't guaranteed.
You have the right to receive a Good Faith Estimate of expected costs before your intensive.
When an intensive isn't the right fit
An intensive is powerful, but it isn't right for every couple. I may recommend a different path if there is physical violence, threats, or fear in the relationship; active substance misuse; a mental health crisis; or an ongoing affair. When that's the case, I'll help you find the right next step, such as individual therapy or other support. If one of you is unsure about staying, discernment counseling is usually the better place to start.
Frequently asked questions
Ready to feel like a team again?
Start with a free, no-pressure 20-minute call. We'll talk about what's happening and whether an intensive or discernment counseling is right for you.
Book a Free Fit Call