Online Couples Therapy in San Francisco
Providing affirming, evidence-based couples therapy online throughout California, with a focus on helping San Francisco Bay Area couples navigate the unique challenges of modern relationships.
Even happy couples fall into patterns that don't serve them.
Maybe it's the same fight that keeps coming up. Maybe it's feeling more like roommates than romantic partners. Maybe everything's pretty darn good, but you know it could be even better.
Here's the thing: Couples therapy isn't just for relationships in crisis. It's for any couple who wants to communicate better, understand each other more deeply, and build skills that will last long after therapy ends.
Couples therapy can be helpful for partners at any stage–whether you've been together for decades or you're just starting to build a life together.
You might be here because:
You're stuck in repeat arguments.
The same arguments keep happening. You know what you're supposed to do differently, but in the moment, it all falls apart. You’re stuck in a cycle of hurt, reaction, regret. You feel like you're speaking different languages, and no matter how hard you try, you can't seem to get through to each other.
You want to foster a mindset of gratitude and generosity.
It’s easy to get caught up in what’s not working.
You're feeling disconnected.
You used to feel close, but now there's distance. You're not sure when it happened or how to get back to each other. You miss feeling understood, desired, or like you're on the same team.
Trust has been broken.
Maybe there was infidelity, a major betrayal, or a series of smaller breaks in trust that have added up over time. You're not sure if the relationship can recover, but you know you want to try.
You're navigating a major transition.
Moving in together, getting married, having kids, career changes, moving to a new city–big life shifts can strain even solid relationships. You want support as you figure out who you are together in this new chapter.
You want to strengthen what's already working.
Things are good, but you're proactive people! You want to build skills now, deepen your intimacy, and make sure you're set up for the long haul.
What We Help With
We work with couples facing a wide range of challenges, including:
Communication issues. Learn to talk about hard things without shutting down or ramping up.
Conflict. Understand and interrupt the patterns that keep you stuck
Emotional distance. Rebuild intimacy and bridge that gap back to each other.
Trust and betrayal. Heal from infidelity or broken agreements
Life transitions. Be on the same page as you navigate big changes.
Sexual intimacy. Address mismatched desire, sexual concerns, or intimacy issues.
Division of labor. Find balance in household responsibilities and mental load.
Different values or goals. Work through differences around money, family planning, or other major decisions.
Our Approach to Couples Therapy
We use methods that are research-backed.
Our approach is grounded in the Gottman Method (backed by 40+ years of research) and Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), which has the highest success rate of any couples therapy approach (73% of couples move from distress to health!). But we don't follow a script. We tailor everything to your specific relationship, your values, and your needs.
We look at patterns, not blame and no sides.
In couples therapy, it's rarely about who's right or wrong. It's about understanding the cycle you're both stuck in and learning how to respond differently. We help you see how you're each contributing to the dynamic (not to make you feel bad, but to give you the power to change it).
We build on what's already strong.
We know you fell in love for good reasons. Couples therapy isn't about fixing everything that's broken, it's about remembering what works, building on your strengths, and creating new patterns that support sustaining the relationship you want.
We help you understand what’s driving your arguments.
Most relationship conflict isn't really about the dishes or whose family to visit for the holidays. It's about what is underneath (like fear of failure, fear of not being good enough, fear of being abandoned, fear of losing yourself). When you can talk about those things, everything shifts.
What to Expect in Couples Therapy
The first session: We’ll spend time getting to know you, your relationship and what you're hoping therapy will help with. During this part of the process, we’ll ask you lots of intrusive questions. Being affirming and trauma-informed means getting to know you before we dive into the challenges you might be facing.
Ongoing sessions: This is where we dive-in, get to work and create new experiences together. We typically meet weekly or biweekly, depending on what makes sense for you. Each session is a chance to reflect, practice new ways of communicating (and listening) and give a voice to what might not be getting expressed. We’ll work together to understand the underlying issues that are driving your disconnection and create new interactional patterns in real time.
Between sessions: Change accelerates when you take what you learn in therapy and practice it in your daily life. We'll sometimes give you tools, readings and exercises to try at home, but mostly just want you to show up ready to participate in-session.
How long it takes: Every couple is different. Some couples feel significantly better after a few months of consistent work. Others need more time, especially if there's been significant betrayal or long-standing patterns to unravel. We'll check in regularly about progress and adjust as needed.
Why Choose Rising Relationship Center?
We're committed to culturally responsive, strengths-based, affirming therapy.
We work with couples of all configurations and identities. You won't have to justify your relationship or explain who you are.
Our practice is 100% online throughout California.
Whether you're in San Francisco, across the Bay Area, or anywhere in California, online therapy makes it easier to fit sessions into your lifestyle..
We meet your relationship where it is.
Whether you're having a hard time or doing preventative relationship maintenance, both are valid reasons to be here! We’ll start with where you are to help you move towards your unique goals.
Ready to Get Started?
You don't have to stay stuck. And you don't have to wait until things are falling apart to invest in your relationship. Let's talk about what's going on and whether couples therapy is a good fit.
FAQs
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For complete and up-to-date details about fees, insurance, sliding scale availability, and your right to receive a Good Faith Estimate, please visit our FAQ page.
TLDR: Our session fees range from $175-$235 depending on the length of your appointment and which therapist you see. We also reserve a portion of our practice for sliding scale or reduced fee structures.
We are out-of-network providers and do not accept insurance directly. However, we provide monthly superbills that clients can submit to their insurance for out-of-network reimbursement. You can also use Health Care Spending Account funds to pay for services.
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We provide all of our services exclusively online through a secure therapy platform. This means you can access our specialized couples and relationship therapy from anywhere in California, whether you're in San Francisco, across the Bay Area, or elsewhere in the state.
Online therapy offers flexibility, convenience, and the comfort of participating from your own space, while still providing the same high-quality care as in-person sessions.
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Ideally, yes. At a minimum, both partners need to be willing to participate and want to work on the relationship. That said, it's totally normal for one person to be more hesitant or skeptical at first. If one of you is on the fence, we can talk about that in the consultation.
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That's okay. Some couples come to therapy to figure out if the relationship is worth saving. We can help you get clarity on that and, if you do decide to separate, support you in doing so in a healthy, respectful way.
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Friends and family love you, but they're also biased (and they often want to take sides). Having a therapist is like having a bird’s-eye-view to help you see patterns you might be missing. We also teach you evidence-based skills, and hold space for both of your experiences without judgment or taking sides.
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Not exactly. We would never tell you how to live your life or make decisions for you, but we will be active participants in sessions. That’s because the real work happens when you're actually trying new ways of communicating together—not just talking about it.
So that means we'll do things like offer insight or observations, give feedback, slow things down when needed, and guide you to practice new skills in the moment.
Our goal is to help you understand each other better and make decisions as a team.