Have you ever felt like your relationship needs a bit of help? Maybe things aren’t as rocky as they could be, but you feel disconnected from your partner. Or, maybe your relationship lacks healthy communication, or you’re stuck in negative cycles that you can’t seem to break.

Sound familiar?

Reaching out for help is a great way to strengthen your relationship and improve everything from intimacy to communication. Emotionally focused therapy (EFT) is highly effective for relationships. It helps couples focus on emotional bonds and attachment while identifying negative patterns that could be causing problems.

Let’s take a closer look at EFT and how it can help your relationship.

What Is Emotionally Focused Therapy?

EFT is a type of therapy specifically designed to help individuals understand their emotions. You can use the knowledge and skills learned in EFT to build stronger connections with people, including your romantic partner.

EFT is heavily rooted in attachment theory, suggesting that the attachments you formed with your parents or caregivers as a child have a direct impact on your relationships today. It focuses on how your emotions, thoughts, and behaviors are all connected. As you become more aware of your emotions (and the emotions of others), you’ll see how they influence your thoughts and behaviors.

The goal of EFT is to restore connection, reduce conflict and negative patterns, and help you interact with your partner in new, healthy ways.

Understanding Emotions

There are many reasons why some people might have trouble understanding or expressing their emotions, but the issues often begin in childhood.

EFT helps you become more aware of your emotions and how you respond to your partner. When you better understand those emotions, you can learn to express your needs in healthy ways. This helps to improve connection and reduce conflict. You’ll also learn how your emotions might fuel harmful patterns in your relationship, so you can change your perspective on certain things.

Creating Secure Attachment

Even if you didn’t develop a secure attachment as a child, EFT can help you foster one now with your partner.

It’s important for both people in a relationship to feel safe and connected. EFT helps build trust, inspire vulnerability, and encourages you to see each other as a “team,” rather than opposing sides. When you start to see yourself with that mindset, you’ll become more emotionally resilient and feel closer to your partner as you work through life’s everyday challenges.

Transforming Relationships

When you’re more aware of your emotions and able to build a secure attachment in your relationship, you’ll also naturally start to become more empathetic. EFT encourages emotional accessibility. You’ll learn how to feel comfortable opening up to your partner, as well as the importance of active listening.

All of these characteristics of EFT are designed to create a lasting change in your relationship. You’ll learn about the root of any underlying issues that have created negative patterns. You’ll foster a more supportive dynamic within the relationship. Most importantly, you’ll be able to start looking at your relationship as a sort of safe haven. Your partner should become someone you can turn to when you need comfort and support.

You don’t have to wait for your relationship to feel like it’s on the ropes before getting help. If you’re feeling stuck or if personal problems from your past are causing issues now, don’t hesitate to reach out. Contact us today to set up a consultation or appointment soon. Together, we’ll work on fostering a secure attachment within your relationship and helping you replace negative patterns with positive interactions that you can build upon for a lifetime.