How to Feel More Confident Working with Couples - with Claire Ratcliffe

Working with couples can feel very different from working with individual clients. There are two people in the room, two different perspectives and the added challenge of managing what happens between them.

In this episode of the Good Enough Counsellors podcast, I talk to integrative psychotherapist, couples therapist and clinical supervisor Claire Ratcliffe about how therapists can feel more confident working with couples.

Claire shares that she didn't always enjoy couples work. Despite completing couples therapy training, she initially felt out of her depth and eventually removed couples counselling from her profile altogether. It was only when she found an approach that suited her, alongside specialist training and supervision, that her experience began to change.

Today, couples work is something she loves.

We talk about what makes couples counselling so rewarding, as well as some of the challenges therapists can face when working with more than one client in the room and how to handle them.

Towards the end of our conversation, we return to something that made a huge difference to both Claire's experience and my own reflections on working with couples: supervision. Claire explains why specialist couples supervision matters and how learning alongside other therapists can help you develop your skills and feel less alone when the work feels challenging.

Claire is also developing a group supervision membership for couples and relationship therapists, with opportunities to learn through case discussion and shared experience. You can find out more about Claire and her supervision offer through the links below.

In this episode, we discuss:Why Claire initially stopped offering couples counsellingThe difference the right training and specialist supervision can makeWhat Claire now loves about working with couplesHow childhood experiences and trauma can play out within relationshipsHelping partners listen without immediately reacting or making it about themselvesWhy slowing things down can be so important in couples therapySex, shame and differences in desire within relationshipsResentment, contempt and what can happen when couples seek help very lateWhy couples therapists can benefit from learning together in supervisionWhat to do if you want to work with couples but don't yet feel confident

If you've ever received an enquiry from a couple and wondered whether you're really equipped to help them, I hope this conversation reassures you that feeling out of your dep