Couples Therapy
Couples Therapy in
Sierra Madre, CA
Helping couples break painful patterns, rebuild trust, and find their way back to one another.
You may still love each other—but feel exhausted by the distance, the fighting, or the sense that something important between you has been lost.
Maybe every conversation turns tense.
Maybe one of you pursues while the other shuts down.
Maybe trust has been damaged.
Maybe parenting, work pressure, loss, or old hurts have made it harder to reach each other.
Often the problem is not simply what you are fighting about, but the pattern you keep getting pulled into together.
At Praxis, we help couples slow those patterns down, understand what is happening beneath them, and build a relationship capable of greater honesty, trust, and connection.
Does This Sound Familiar?
Many couples come to therapy feeling stuck in patterns like:
Having the same argument over and over
Feeling more like roommates than partners
Walking on eggshells to avoid conflict
One partner pursuing while the other withdraws
Resentment building beneath the surface
Struggles with intimacy or affection
Parenting stress straining the relationship
Trust broken by secrecy, betrayal, or emotional distance
Wondering if the relationship can be repairedYou are not broken.
But the pattern between you may need help.
Why Smart Couples Still Struggle
Most couples assume the problem is the latest disagreement:
money
sex
in-laws
chores
parenting
time together
But usually the real problem is deeper.
Under the surface, couples often become trapped in reactive cycles:
criticize / defend
pursue / withdraw
anger / shutdown
demand / avoid
fear / protect
Without help, these patterns harden over time.
The good news: patterns can change.
How Couples Therapy Helps
We help you understand the cycle—and create a new one.
In therapy, we work to help both partners:
Communicate with less defensiveness
Understand each other beneath the conflict
Rebuild emotional safety
Repair trust after wounds or betrayals
Navigate parenting and life stress as a team
Express needs clearly and honestly
Increase warmth, affection, and connection
Create healthier conflict that leads somewhere productive
This is not about assigning blame.
It is about helping both people understand what keeps happening—and how to move forward differently.
Our Approach at Praxis
We draw from evidence-based and depth-oriented approaches including:
Gottman Method Couples Therapy
Restoration Therapy
Attachment-Based Therapy
Emotionally Focused principles
Family Systems thinking
We combine practical tools with deeper relational insight.
That means we care not only about stopping arguments—but helping you build the kind of relationship you actually want.
Why Couples Choose Praxis
Couples choose Praxis because they want more than surface-level advice.
We offer:
Experienced couples therapists
Warm, honest, direct care
Premium private practice experience
Practical tools + emotional depth
Faith-sensitive care if desired
Support for high-functioning, busy couples
A space where both partners can feel heard
Therapists Who Understand the Work of Relationships:
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Sam Kemp, AMFT
ASSOCIATE CLINICIAN
Sam works primarily with couples navigating recurring conflict, emotional distance, parenting pressure, and the strain of changing family roles. With a strong family-systems perspective, he helps couples see the larger pattern they are caught in and find more workable ways of relating to one another. -
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Ryan Forsell, LMFT
FOUNDER & CLINICAL DIRECTOR
Ryan works especially well with couples whose conflict has become entrenched—where the same fights repeat, resentment has accumulated, or both partners understand the problem but cannot seem to change the pattern. His approach is direct and depth-oriented, helping couples uncover what is driving the cycle and build a relationship capable of greater honesty, difference, and connection. -
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James DiLapo, AMFT
ASSOCIATE CLINICIAN
James is developing couples work as an intentional area of clinical growth within Praxis. He brings a relational, thoughtful approach and is especially interested in helping couples understand the patterns shaping their connection, conflict, and sense of partnership.
What comes next?
Still unsure who you want to work with?
20-minute call with our intake coordinator to help answer your questions and find the right clinician for you
Ready to meet with a clinician?
50-minute consultation with the clinician you have selected. Afterward, you will have 48 hours to decide whether you would like to continue.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Sometimes therapy brings difficult truths into the open. But avoiding them often keeps couples stuck. Good therapy helps conflict become productive instead of destructive.
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Our role is not to choose a winner. Our role is to understand the cycle, protect fairness, and help both partners grow.
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No ethical therapist can guarantee outcomes. But many couples experience meaningful healing, clarity, and transformation when both people engage sincerely.
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Yes. Earlier intervention is often easier and more effective than waiting until resentment has hardened.
The state of your relationship affects everything else.
Your stress.
Your parenting.
Your emotional health.
Your sense of home.
You do not have to stay trapped in the same painful pattern.
Let’s help you reconnect.
Visit Praxis
In-person counseling in Sierra Madre, California, with secure virtual sessions available throughout California.
Sierra Madre, CA
71 W Sierra Madre Blvd, Sierra Madre, CA 91024
Hours
Monday–Saturday
7:00 am – 9:00 pm
Phone
(626) 578-5803