Intensive Couples Therapy

Together. Apart. Together Differently.

One and Two Day Options in Cedar Falls, Iowa

We offer one and two day couples therapy intensives, where Josh and Ashley Swanson bring together two complementary specialties to help you break frustrating patterns, work through the pain behind them, and reconnect with each other.

We offer one and two day options for couples who

  • Feel stuck

  • Have difficult schedules

  • Are in crisis

  • Argue endlessly

  • Are close to splitting up, but aren't ready to give up

  • Want to see as much change as quickly as possible

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Josh is certified in Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFT).
Ashley has advanced training in Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART).
Our approach combines these strengths to reduce conflict and make space for love.

Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) helps couples step out of painful patterns and practice, in real time, new ways of responding in the moment, reconnecting in your relationships, and rekindling the love in your hearts.

Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) gives each partner dedicated space to work with their past, so the present doesn’t have to include the same emotional intensity that has dominated your relationship for so long.

Together.

Apart.

Together Differently.

We begin with EFT, identifying the cycle keeping you stuck and the ways each partner gets pulled into that cycle.

Later, each partner gets individual time to explore the experiences and reactions feeding that cycle.

Finally, we come back together to practice new ways of being and connecting.

Choose the Intensive That Fits Your Needs:

Full Day Intensive - $1,950

Best suited for couples seeking focused work with a relatively clear pattern or problem. Concentrated treatment without a comprehensive assessment process.

Early Morning: EFT

Late Morning: Individual Therapy with Josh and Ashley

Afternoon: EFT

Two Day Comprehensive - $3,900

Best suited for couples with more entrenched patterns, significant relationship injuries, or couples who want a more comprehensive assessment and treatment process.

Two Weeks Beforehand: Gottman Relationship Checkup

Day 1: Assessment, EFT, and Individual Therapy

Morning: Assessment

Early Afternoon: EFT

Late Afternoon: Individual Therapy with Josh and Ashley

Day 2: Extended EFT

All Day EFT

One Month Afterward - One hour EFT with Josh

Request a Consultation

Your Couples Therapy Intensive Therapists

Josh Swanson

Josh Swanson is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Certified Emotionally Focused Couples Therapist. Josh also has special training in Sex Therapy.

Josh believes in being both validating and direct. Early in your work, his validation creates the soft landing required to call out the behaviors keeping you stuck. Later in your work, his compassion and clarity carve out a space for the vulnerable reaching and responsive reaching back your relationship needs.

Ashley Swanson

Ashley Swanson is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor and has special training in Accelerated Resolution Therapy.

With a history of working inpatient mental health and with clients who have faced heavy trauma, Ashley helps you stay grounded and safe while exploring difficult memories and emotions. Ashley’s work helps you process the past pains that are blocking you from present joys.

Is a Couples Intensive Right for Us?

You are a Good Fit if:

  • You want to try everything before getting divorced

  • You are considering getting married and want to make sure you do it right

  • You want to strengthen your relationship quickly and securely

  • You are exhausted, tired of repeating the same conflict pattern

You are Not a Good Fit if Your Relationship Includes:

  • Active alcohol or drug abuse

  • Current intimate-partner violence or significant safety concerns

  • An ongoing affair that has not ended

  • Acute mental illness that impedes participation

What Happens After the Intensive?

If you select the Two-Day Comprehensive Intensive, your time with Josh will include scheduling a follow-up appointment one month after your Intensive, included in the cost. This session gives us a chance to build on the work we’ve done, revisit what you discovered, and see how the changes you began making are holding up in everyday life.

Both Intensives include the option to schedule additional hourly sessions with Josh or Ashley if continued work would be helpful.

Expect to feel a little emotionally sore afterward. You’ll have spent hours talking about things that matter deeply to both of you. Give yourselves some time to be gentle with one another, let the experience settle, and practice the new ways of connecting you began during the Intensive.

FAQ

  • Our one day intensive is designed for couples facing a clear problem who want progress on that problem quickly, such as sexual compatibility or the recent discovery of an affair.

    Our two day intensive is designed for couples looking for a more comprehensive approach to their relationship. Issues such as sex or frequent arguing will be a priority during our intensive, but the primary focus is on calming overly hot feelings and warming up overly cold ones in order to empower you to resolve these issues on your own moving forward.

  • You do not need to be married to schedule an intensive.

  • Both Josh and Ashley have experience with infidelity recovery. Our intensives can help repair hurt emotions from an affair, as well as rebuild the connection damaged by it.

    That said, our intensives are not appropriate if the affair is currently ongoing. Ongoing affairs block the emotional connection and investment required to give our intensives the energy and passion required for them to succeed.

  • Insurance does not cover couples intensives. and we will not issue a superbill.

  • Absolutely. Josh and Ashley are confident and experienced in talking about sex. If you don’t bring up sex, we will.

  • Yes, you can travel from any location for our Cedar Falls based intensives.

  • ART is included as clinically indicated. You will get time with Ashley, who is trained in ART. During your screening and individual session with her, Ashley will determine if one or both partners will benefit from an ART session.

  • We will bring our clinical experience and training to your couples therapy intensive. We ask you to bring your full emotional investment and engagement to the intensive. That said, we cannot guarantee results from either of our intensives.