Overview

Part 1 of this workshop explores discernment counseling, a systemic approach to working with couples where one partner is leaning toward divorce and the other wants to preserve the relationship and work on it in couples therapy. These “mixed‐agenda” couples are common in clinical systemic practice but have been neglected in the literature. Although most couples therapy models assume that both partners present for treatment with at least a basic motivation to preserve and improve the relationship, the goal of discernment counseling is clarity and confidence regarding the next steps for the relationship, based on a deeper understanding of each partner's contributions. It offers partners in marriage crisis short-term counseling – 5 meetings or less – for the sole purpose of helping them weigh options and create well-thought-out decisions regarding the future of their marriage. Divorce is also a substantial challenge for mental health professionals, as standard psychotherapeutic approaches can prove insufficient for the complexities of couples in crisis. Part 2 of this workshop focuses on best systemic practices working with individuals and couple involved in the divorce process. This asynchronous workshop offers strategies for intervention that show therapists how to calm individuals, couples, and families in acute distress, and help ease the transition to a new family structure. We highlight the research on divorce and mental health; describe concrete interventions that achieve realistic treatment goals; explain how therapists interact with the legal system in divorce cases; and offer adaptations for different types of divorce, including high-conflict and more normative divorces.