+ When is the right time to seek marriage counseling or relationship counseling?

There’s no single “perfect” moment — many couples wait until conflict feels overwhelming, communication has broken down, or emotional distance has grown. From a Gottman Method perspective, counseling can be helpful long before things reach a breaking point. Research shows that patterns like frequent criticism, defensiveness, shutdown, or feeling unheard are early signs a relationship could benefit from support. Seeking counseling sooner allows couples to strengthen communication, rebuild connection, and address issues before resentment becomes deeply rooted. Whether you’re feeling stuck, disconnected, or simply want to improve your relationship, counseling can help you build healthier patterns and a stronger foundation.

+ What happens in a counseling session?

A session is a confidential space where you and your therapist talk through concerns, set goals, and explore patterns in thinking, behavior, and relationships. Early sessions often focus on understanding your history, your goals, and how we can best support you. Counseling is collaborative — you guide what matters most to you.

+ Do you just listen, or will the therapist guide the process?

Therapists listen carefully, but they also help guide the process through questions, observations, and tools that support insight and growth. The goal is not simply to hear you but to help you understand patterns, identify strengths, and develop new ways of relating or coping.

+ How long are sessions and how often will I meet with my therapist??

Length of counceling sessions depend on the therapist. Frequency varies by needs — some clients start weekly or biweekly, then adjust based on goals and progress. This schedule helps build momentum and allows time to practice new skills between sessions.

+ Are you going to tell me what to do? Will you tell me if I should stay in a relationship or leave?

As your relationship therapists, we are here to help you to sort out your thoughts and feelings so you gain the clarity to make decisions that will make you feel better. We won’t tell you what to do. We will help you and your partner understand what is not working and teach you skills to get the relationship that you want. We can help you to get from where you are to where you want to be.

+ What If I am interested in coming in for couples therapy but my partner is not?

That is actually totally normal and quite common that not both partners are ready to do couples therapy and marriage counseling. Many of our clients start the process themselves and still improve their relationship. It is a scary and difficult step to come into a stranger's office and share all your private matters. Starting couples therapy and marriage counseling takes a lot of courage. However, you won't see any changes without taking any steps. Fortunately, our evidence and research based modalities and YY Wei's use of Michele Weiner - Davis' approach, Divorce Busting: A Step-By-Step Approach to Making Your Marriage Loving Again, have shown results. You can call us at (720) 660-2321 or Contact Us to get your 15 min free consultation about Marriage Counseling & Couples Therapy. You will get a chance to interview us to determine your comfort level with us and get all your questions answered.

+ My partner is afraid that you'll take my side and criticize/attack them.

This is a very common concern, and it makes sense. Many couples come to therapy after talking with friends or family members who, while well-intentioned, may have taken sides or unintentionally increased tension. Couples therapy works very differently.

Our role is not to determine who is “right” or “wrong,” and we do not criticize or attack either partner. As trained Denver marriage counselors and couples therapists, we serve as a neutral, unbiased third party whose focus is the relationship itself. We help both partners feel heard and understood while working together to identify unhelpful patterns, reduce conflict, and build healthier ways of communicating.

Rather than placing blame, we help you function as a team — united against the challenges, not against each other. Therapy is about creating clarity, safety, and forward movement, not repeating the same painful dynamics.

We also welcome open feedback. If at any point you feel misunderstood or concerned that sessions feel unbalanced, we encourage you to share that directly so it can be addressed collaboratively.

If your partner would like to learn more before committing, they are welcome to explore our About Us page or reach out with questions. We are also happy to offer a brief phone call or message exchange so both of you can feel comfortable and confident moving forward. Your comfort and trust matter to us.

+ I talk to my partner, and he/she just does not want to talk to anyone.

No worries. You can still get help having Couples Therapy for One. You and your partner are part of your relationship system. What we know and have seen is that it is totally possible to create positive changes in a relationship with one partner learning new, clear, concrete strategies. YY Wei, LCSW, has also trained with Michele Weiner - Davis, who is the Director of The Divorce Busting® Center. Michele is all about action based approach. Michele's modality and her book, Divorce Busting: A Step-By-Step Approach to Making Your Marriage Loving Again, all show that a relationship could be saved with just one partner's desire and effort to make a change. Denver Marriage Counseling & Couples Therapy can help you change the dynamic even just with you in the office.

+ Can counseling help after an affair or major breach of trust?

Yes. While healing after betrayal is challenging and requires commitment from both partners, many couples find recovery and often deepen their understanding of each other with guided support.

+ Do you work with issues other than relationship struggles??

Absolutely. Counseling can address stress, anxiety, depression, grief and loss, life transitions, self-esteem, unresolved trauma, and emotional regulation — both within and outside relationships.

+ Do you work with clients of all relationship types and backgrounds???

Yes — we work with individuals and couples regardless of marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, cultural background, or relationship style. Everyone deserves support that honors their unique life and goals.

+ Do you work with people who are not married or in a relationships?

Absolutely! We work with both individuals and married and unmarried couples. The goal of therapy is to learn new skills to cope with whatever life brings so you feel better. Plus, part of being in a relationship is you have to do your own work as you are half of the dynamic. If you are thinking about doing individual work, you are already ahead of the game when you enter a relationship.

+ Do you work with same-sex couples and mixed-orientation couples?

Yes, we do work with same–sex couples and mixed-orientation couples. Everyone deserves to have the relationship that they want and a satisfying sex life.

+ Why Therapy? Shouldn't I be able to get better on my own?

No doubt that you have already tried many things to make things better. You certainly have inner resources to handle the situation on your own. Therapy is just another way to learn more tools to add on to your toolbox so you get more ideas and skills to get relief from stress, depression, anxiety and relationship struggles.

+ Do you accept insurance?

Many practices like ours do not bill insurance directly because insurance companies typically require diagnoses and can limit provider choice. We can provide a superbill for you to submit to your insurer for possible out-of-network reimbursement.

+ How do I prepare for my first counseling session?

There’s nothing special you need to do to prepare beyond showing up as you are. Before your first session, you may be asked to complete some brief intake paperwork so your therapist can better understand your background and goals. It can be helpful to spend a little time reflecting on what led you to seek counseling and what you hope might change, but you don’t need to have clear answers or solutions. The first session is about getting to know you, understanding what matters most to you, and beginning to create a plan together at a pace that feels comfortable.

+ Where are you located and how do I find you?

Our counseling office is located at 7586 W. Jewell Ave. #300, Lakewood, CO 80232. This central location makes it accessible for clients from Denver, Lakewood, and surrounding communities. We may also offer some virtual/telehealth options depending on your needs (check with us for current availability and eligibility)

+ Why don't you accept insurance?

• In using health insurance to cover counseling for individuals and couples, the therapist will typically have to diagnose one of you with a mental health disorder. The Relationship Center of Colorado does not believe that coming in for therapy to get help and support so you can get the life and the relationship that you want is considered problematic and a mental health disorder. That is not marriage counseling, couples therapy, sex therapy, and/or individual therapy. Our primary focus is on your relationship with yourself and your relationship with your loved one. We want you to flourish and move forward, and your relationship to bring in happiness and satisfaction. Diagnoses are secondary and quite frankly unethical to label a life event as a "disorder."

• It is a real risk to label one of the partners as the “patient” as that will unbalance the treatment and pathologize the partner. Couples issues are couples issues! They are issues happened in the dynamic that the both of you have to address together and both actively take responsibility and make changes on your part.

• A diagnosis says nothing about who you are, how you cope, what your strengths are, and which of the many symptoms you actually have. A diagnosis however, could negatively impact your eligibility for things and job searching.

• You lose full confidentiality of your information, which means you lose control over who and what they get to see about you. This means that when you apply for new health insurance, life insurance, and many types of job, they can require an authorization to release information to view your entire medical record. With health care reform, being denied coverage due to a preexisting condition is thankfully less of an issue, however, companies can charge much higher premiums because of having ever been treated for a mental health issue.

+ Therapy is so expensive. How can I justify spending so much?

• Therapy is expensive. That is why we are committed to keeping it focused and getting to the root of the problem. Did you know that the average cost for a divorce in the USA is $15,000 - Therapy is a lot cheaper! Plus, you learn concrete skills to have a healthier, better, stronger, more vibrant, and more fulfilling marriage and life. Therapy is an investment that is hard to put a price tag on. People spend money on buying healthy, food, joining health clubs, and getting prescription drugs for their needs. Your emotional needs are more important than any other needs so don’t stop yourself from getting the life and the relationship that you want. Call us at (720) 660–2321 to start feeling better!

+ YY Wei, MSW, LCSW, CST - Couples Therapy, Marriage Counseling, Sex Therapy, Couples Retreat, Marathon Individual & Couples Counseling

The fee during normal office hours (Mondays-Fridays: 8:30am-2pm) is $350 for 50 min whether in person, or any other form of communication.

YY Wei’s non-office hours, holiday and weekend rate is $400 for 50 min.

Longer sessions available and fees will be prorated. Full payment for each session is expected at the beginning or the end of the therapy session unless other arrangement shave been previously arranged. 

For more information about doing Couples Retreat or Marathon Individual and Couples Counseling  with YY Wei, or any other questions about services provided at The Relationship Center of Colorado, please call (720) 660-2321 or email us for more information.

Structure of Therapy with YY Wei

• My standard rate for a counseling session during normal office hours (Mondays-Fridays: 8:30am-2pm) is $350 for 50 min whether in person, or any other form of communication.

• My fee for** non-office hours, holiday and weekend sessions is $400 for 50 min** whether in person, or any other forms of communication.

• My first 4 sessions with my couples are 100 minutes per session. The reason I do the following format is because I want to do a thorough assessment and gather as much information as possible to guide my therapeutic work with you and you partner. I want to use however much hope and motivation that’s still there to maximize the possibility of repairing the relationship.

1. The 1st session, I will meet with both you and your partner for **100 minutes ($700) **to gather relationship history, events and dynamics that have led up to where you guys currently are.

2. The 2nd session, I will meet with one of you for 100 minutes ($700) to gather information about that partner.

3. The 3rd session, I will meet with the other partner for 100 minutes ($700) to gather information about that partner.

4. At the end of the 3rd session, the therapist will send out an online couples assessment through The Gottman Institute, and you will be responsible for the cost ($39) of the assessment. When both of you finish your assessment, the therapist will get a notification that the assessment is ready for her to review and analyze about your relationship. The therapist will spend 100 minutes ($700) on it.

5. At the 4th session, we will all meet together again for 100 minutes ($700). This will be our review session based on our face to face sessions. We will have a discussion of how we want to continue therapy and develop our initial action plan.

6. After the 4th session, you and your partner can decide if you want to meet for my standard 50 min session, or longer session. The standard rate for a counseling session with me is $350 for 50 min.

7. Most of my couples have found starting with weekly 100 min to be more effective. Once they become more stable because they have learned and practiced the healthier relationship skills outside of my office, we talk and decrease the frequency and duration of our therapy sessions. As your therapist, I will give your my thoughts but you and your partner get to decide what works the best for your relationship and your financial planning.

Please Note

• Rates are based having sessions during normal office hours (Mondays-Fridays: 8:30am-2pm). YY Wei's standard rate for a counseling session during normal office hours (Mondays-Fridays: 8:30am-2pm)  is $350 for 50 min whether in person, or any other form of communication.

• YY Wei’s non-office hours, holiday and weekend rate is $400 for 50 min whether in person, or any other forms of communication.

• You and your partner can choose not to follow the above structure as you are the consumers. YY Wei, as the therapist, will decide if she feels comfortable giving therapeutic inputs and working with you without gathering relevant information for treatment. 

• Payments can be made via cash, check, HSA, and credit card (VISA, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover). We do not work directly with insurance providers, accept insurance, or file claims for insurance reimbursement. However, we are happy to provide you with a super bill for you to submit to your insurance company/healthcare plan (e.g., out of network, flexible/health spending account, etc.) for possible reimbursement.

• If you choose to use credit, debit cards, or HSA cards for payment, a 3.5% service charge will be added to the charges for therapy.

+ Margaret Kapitan, MS, LMFT - Denver & Lakewood Couples Therapy & Marriage Counseling

• The standard rate with Margaret for a counseling session is $225 for 50 min whether in person, or any other forms of communication.

• Longer sessions available and fees will be prorated. Full payment for each session is expected at the end of the therapy session unless other arrangement shave been previously arranged. 

• Payments can be made via cash, check, HSA, and credit card (VISA, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover). We do not work directly with insurance providers, accept insurance, or file claims for insurance reimbursement. However, we are happy to provide you with a super bill for you to submit to your insurance company/healthcare plan (e.g., out of network, flexible/health spending account, etc.) for possible reimbursement.

• If you choose to use credit, debit cards, or HSA cards for payment, a 3.5% service charge will be added to the charges for therapy.

+ Jacob (Jake) Booth, MA, MFTC - Denver & Lakewood Couples Therapy & Marriage Counseling

• The standard rate with Jake for a counseling session is $190 for 50 min whether in person, or any other forms of communication.

• Longer sessions available and fees will be prorated. Full payment for each session is expected at the end of the therapy session unless other arrangement shave been previously arranged. 

• Payments can be made via cash, check, HSA, and credit card (VISA, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover). We do not work directly with insurance providers, accept insurance, or file claims for insurance reimbursement. However, we are happy to provide you with a super bill for you to submit to your insurance company/healthcare plan (e.g., out of network, flexible/health spending account, etc.) for possible reimbursement.

• If you choose to use credit, debit cards, or HSA cards for payment, a 3.5% service charge will be added to the charges for therapy.