The Counseling Convos Podcast Season 3 Episode 4: Beyond Couple's Feuds
🎙️ Beyond Couples Feud Season 3, Episode 4 — Counseling Convos with Geries Shaheen, LPC
In this heart-level, brain-powered episode of Counseling Convos, host Geries Shaheen, LPC, NCC untangles a rising challenge in couples therapy: when well-meaning resourcing or clarifying questions are perceived as gaslighting.
How do we hold space for deep relational wounds without being caught in the crossfire? What happens when trauma-informed clients feel retraumatized—by the very act of inquiry?
In Beyond Couples Feud, we explore the tension between therapeutic neutrality and emotional safety. We unpack real-world scripts, interventions, and referral practices that honor autonomy, create clarity, and help clients move from relational shutdown to connection.
💡 Topics include:
* Gaslighting vs. clarifying: when the line gets blurry
* How trauma and attachment shape emotional responses in session
* Scripts for rebuilding safety in real time
* When and how to refer for sex therapy with compassion and clarity
* The philosophical differences between LPCs and LMFTs
* Evidence-based interventions for common couples conflicts
Whether you're a clinician, a couple navigating your own journey, or a curious listener who loves diving deep into the psychology of relationships, this episode brings rich tools, thoughtfulness, and just the right amount of meta-reflection.
🎧 Subscribe and join us as we go beyond conflict—and toward repair.
🔍 Cited Research & Resources:
* Carlson, D. L., Miller, A. J., Sassler, S., & Hanson, S. (2020). The division of housework, gender, and perceived fairness. Journal of Family Issues, 41(7), 1163–1186.
* Dew, J., & Stewart, R. (2012). A financial issue or marital issue? Family Relations, 61(4), 615–628.
* Gottman, J. M., & Silver, N. (2015). The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work. Harmony Books.
* Johnson, S. M., & Greenman, P. S. (2013). Emotionally focused couple therapy. Psychotherapy in Australia, 19(3), 56.
* Rogge, R. D., et al. (2013). The CARE program. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 81(6), 1022.
* Weeks, G. R., Hertlein, K. M., & Gambescia, N. (2016). A Clinician’s Guide to Systemic Sex Therapy. Routledge.
* White, M., & Epston, D. (1990). Narrative Means to Therapeutic Ends. Norton & Company.
* Wiebe, S. A., & Johnson, S. M. (2016). Emotionally focused therapy review. Family Process, 55(3), 390–407.
* Williams, M. J., & Zweig, J. S. (2015). CBT for jealousy. Journal of Contemporary Psychotherapy, 45(2), 83–91.
