How getting therapy for yourself can help your relationship

We’ve talked before about how helpful couples therapy, including sex therapy, can be, and it’s just as essential to work on yourself as an individual. That’s where individual therapy (which just means therapy where you work one-on-one with the therapist) comes in. Here are five ways individual therapy can help you gain self-awareness, work through interpersonal challenges, and improve communication, all of which can lead to healthier, happier relationships.

1. Gain clarity and insight

Have you ever gone through a breakup because of some big issue or another then noticed that same issue coming up in your next relationship? And the next one? Time to look inward. Therapy can help you gain a deeper understanding of your own thought patterns, unhelpful beliefs, and behaviors, including the ones that are interfering with your relationships.

2. Accept that your partner isn’t perfect, and neither are you

Expectations of perfection, whether they’re coming from childhood exposure to fairy tales or adulthood exposure to social media, can be really harmful to relationships. Individual therapy can help you unpack and let go of the idea of a perfect relationship and stop comparing what you have to what you think others have.

3. Address past traumas

Past traumas can have a significant impact on our lives as well as on our relationships. If you or your partner have experienced trauma, therapy can provide a way to process and heal from these experiences. By working through past traumas, you may be able to better understand the ways in which they’re impacting your happiness and your current relationship and then work to overcome these challenges.

4. Learn to be a better communicator

If you feel like you’re having the same argument over and over again, chances are you and your partner are having some communication challenges. Individual therapy can help you develop better communication skills so you can express yourself in a healthy, effective way. You can also learn how to practice active listening and conflict resolution in your relationship, both of which can be game changers.

5. Identify and set your boundaries

We may know that boundaries are important in our relationships, but setting them (and sometimes even figuring out what they are) can be tricky. Individual therapy can help you identify your boundaries, which can help you feel more confident and in control in relationships. You can also learn through individual therapy how to communicate your boundaries in a way that’s respectful and effective.

6. Process your experiences in a safe environment

Individual therapy provides a unique opportunity to process your thoughts and feelings with someone who is completely focused on you. In therapy, unlike in most other situations in life, it’s all about you, your personal growth, your needs, and your desires. It can be hard to access vulnerability but having a safe space to do so can help you work on any personal and/or relationship challenges you’re having.