Couples Intensives

Couples' intensive sessions are designed to help couples address significant issues in their relationship more quickly than traditional weekly therapy. An intensive often takes place over a few days or a weekend and involves deep, one-on-one work with Chelsea. A short intensive may consist of 3-5 hours, while longer intensives may consist of 10-20 hours, broken up into multiple sessions.

The goal of an intensive is unique to each couple, but it is often to help couples resolve conflicts, improve communication, rebuild trust, and deepen their connection. The setting is quiet, private, and intimate, allowing couples to work without distractions. The format typically includes a mix of individual therapy, joint counseling sessions, and structured activities aimed at increasing intimacy, understanding, and commitment.

Couples find that Chelsea’s respectful approach fosters a sense of safety and trust during the couples therapy intensive. Chelsea will seek to understand your story, dig beneath the surface to uncover dynamics that interfere with having a healthy relationship, clarify your goals, and empower you to move forward with clarity, confidence, and connection.

A space for healing and hope

What’s Included in Couples Intensives:

Both Intensive options have a pre-intensive process, which includes:

  • An extensive individual questionnaire to be completed by each partner individually

  • 60-minute Individual session with Partner #1

  • 60-minute Individual session with Partner #2

*The individual sessions can be done the day of the intensive or the week prior.

One Day

This option is for couples that may be in weekly or biweekly sessions but want concentrated time in a longer session to allow for deeper work to take place.

This option consists of 5 hours of therapy, either all in one day or broken up. Couples have the option to do the 2 hours of individual sessions the week before the 3-hour couples session.

This option includes:

  • A personalized follow-up plan

  • A take-home folder filled with communication and conflict resolution tools that were used during the intensive.

Investment: $875

Three Days

This option is for couples who are stuck, in ongoing pain, and/or are navigating a crisis. This is a good option for couples who are ready to dive deep into their story and relationship challenges.

This option consists of 10 hours of therapy broken up over 2 or 3 days. Chelsea will work with each couple to customize a schedule. Here is a Sample Schedule.

 This option includes:

  • A personalized follow-up plan

  • A take-home folder filled with communication and conflict resolution tools that were used during the intensive.

Investment: $1750

A 50% deposit will be required to confirm your Intensive reservation, and the remaining 50% will be charged on the day of the Intensive.

An Intensive is the next best step when…

1. You need a higher level of care than weekly counseling can provide: Sometimes the pain and difficulty of your circumstances are far greater than what can be addressed in an hour a week in counseling sessions. Especially when your emotional well-being or relationship is on the line. Whether it’s a betrayal, ongoing arguments, or years of distance, intensives are a wonderful option for couples who want things to improve faster than traditional therapy. 

2.  You feel stuck and don't know the actual root, so you can't move forward: Have you been in weekly couples counseling for months or years, and you still feel confused about what’s wrong? Maybe you’ve talked through a lot of issues, but don’t feel like you’ve gotten to the bottom of the problem or clarified the core issue. At best, this is frustrating, and at worst, it can fuel hopelessness. This is when people begin to feel that healing or change is not possible. The truth is, we need to understand the real problem before we can heal from it, and sometimes we need extended sessions and time away in a safe environment for real change to happen.

3. You need freedom from the distractions of daily life and responsibilities: Whether it’s a challenging work schedule, parenting, or other relationships, the demands of life often make therapeutic work exhausting, if not impossible. Incorporating regular counseling into your life and schedule might not be feasible right now. Even if you can get to a session, processing may feel too overwhelming when life is still right there afterwards. When you attend an intensive, you get to pull away from the normal distractions and responsibilities of daily life and have space for deeper work and reflections.

4. You have a leadership or public role and need a private, confidential space: You can step away from who you are publicly and address your issues without shame, judgment, or needing to be there for others. Often, leaders, pastors, and public figures attend intensives to find the confidentiality they need to do the work of healing.

5. You want to jumpstart counseling or accelerate the work you are already doing: If you’re just beginning couples counseling, an intensive allows you to jumpstart the process by building a foundation that could otherwise take 6-9 months. If you’re actively working with a therapist and motivated to make changes, an intensive can provide concentrated support and focused time to dig deep and accelerate the work you are already doing.

 Intensive FAQs

  • In-person intensives are held in Brighton, Michigan.

  • It depends on your situation, but in general, yes. Studies have shown that couples who choose couples therapy intensives over traditional sessions experience more powerful change that lasts longer with less relapse.

  • In most cases, I can start an intensive in less than two weeks from the time a couple initially contacts us. Sometimes, in just a few days!

  • This is a personal question. That being said, traditional, weekly couples therapy will cost around $150-$250 a session. This can total around $4,800-$9,600 over the course of the year.

    Comparatively, our intensive is more affordable, and you can get immediate results instead of lingering in pain week after week.

    Another way to look at it is to ask how much your relationship is worth to you. How much is the pain of what you’re going through right now costing you? Compare the investment for an intensive to the $15,000-$20,000 average cost of divorce in the US. And that doesn’t begin to factor in the other emotional pain of a deteriorating relationship.

  • To help you maintain and build on the work you’ve done, I almost always recommend continued individual or couples therapy. I often find, however, that the intensive itself provides the couple with what they need to move forward and build a better future for themselves.

“My partner and I were at an all-time low in our marriage, ready to give up after 14 years together. Chelsea helped us rediscover what we loved about each other and guided us through some incredibly tough pain points. She created a safe, judgment-free space where we could express ourselves and be vulnerable, which allowed the healing process to begin. Thanks to Chelsea, we’re now working toward a stronger, more connected relationship and rebuilding our friendship. We are forever grateful for her support and expertise!”

Intensive Client Review

Give the gift of hope.

If you have a friend or family that is struggling, consider giving them the gift of a marriage intensive. Please reach out if this is something you are interested in.