Couples Counselor and Much More
Tony and Sean had been together for 15 years, however Ton’s diagnosed bi-polar disorder (often called manic depression) was taking a serious toll on their relationship. Tony had been diagnosed when he was 20 years old, and Sean was aware of the disorder and accepting of it for the many years they had been together, helping and supporting Tony through the myriad of Doctor‘s appointments and shifts in type and quantity of medication. They had been through many “roller coaster rides” together dealing with the disorder, but the past few years, Sean saw Tony begin to resort to self-medicating through the use of alcohol and marijuana. Sean felt that he had reached the end of his tolerance for Tony’s behavior and began to resent what he felt was Tony “ using manic depression as an excuse.”
As a last resort to save their relationship, Tony agreed to couples counseling, but he was highly uncooperative during the first few sessions, even going so far as to disassociate himself and look through a magazine while Sean was speaking with the counselor.
The counselor knew that she must first address the medications that Tony was taking and ensure that he was not in the middle of a bi-polar episode as, if he was truly bi-polar, she knew it would do little good to counsel someone in the swings of this difficult mental disease. She referred him to a psychiatrist in her office so they could review his regimen.
In this case, the couples counselor was forced to address Tony’s bi-polar disorder on numerous levels before she could then help get the relationship back on track.
Related Posts
- Couples Counselor Is A Last Resort
- How to Choose a Couples’ Counselor
- The Transformative Power of a Trained Couples Counselor
- Couples Counselor Communicates
- Which Couples Counselor is Right for You?
[...] Couples Counselor and Much More | The Marriage Counseling Blog [...]