Kimberly Schildbach Therapy
Online Couples Therapy and Discernment Counseling in Washington, Massachusetts, Connecticut, & Florida.
Couples Therapy in Boston & Greater Boston
For couples who are ready to get stretch themselves in service of something better.
Serving couples throughout Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, Brookline, Newton, Wellesley, Needham, Quincy, and surrounding Massachusetts communities.
You love each other. You just can't seem to reach each other anymore.
Couples Therapy in Boston, Massachusetts
You keep having the same fight. You explain yourself, they hear something completely different. They try to explain themselves, and somehow you feel even more misunderstood. One of you is desperate to get closer, while the other is so overwhelmed by the conflict that pulling away feels like the only way to survive it.
You're both hurting, but you're hurting in different ways.
You may be thinking, “Why can't you just listen to me?” while your partner is thinking, “Nothing I do is ever enough.” You reach harder because you need reassurance. They pull back because they feel like they're failing you. You experience their distance as rejection. They experience your pursuit as pressure. And around and around you go.
The hardest part is that you don't know how to get to each other anymore.
You can love someone deeply and still feel profoundly alone in your relationship. You can sleep next to each other and feel miles apart. You can want the same marriage and still have absolutely no idea how to stop hurting each other long enough to find it.
And sometimes there is even more underneath it - broken trust, infidelity, addiction, resentment, years of unresolved hurt, or something that happened that changed how safe love feels between you.
You are in the right place for couples therapy if you're in Boston or in the Boston area, and there is hope. Couples therapy works. And it would be my privilege to come alongside you both as we heal the root causes so you can be on the same team again.
How Couples Therapy in Boston, MA Helps Couples Get to the Root of What Matters
Couples Therapy in Boston, Massachusetts
I work with couples who have gotten to a place they never expected to be.
You may still love each other. You may still want the same life. And yet somehow, you cannot seem to reach each other. And it feels like the person you most want comfort from is often the person you feel most hurt by.
I've spent more than 20 years working with couples in Boston and all of Massachusetts in exactly this kind of pain. High-achieving, intelligent, capable people who can solve enormous problems at work and in the rest of their lives, but feel completely defeated by what is happening in their marriage.
I specialize in couples so I know how to help in all sorts of high-stakes situations couples find themselves including divorce ambivalence or infidelity.
And after more than 20 years of doing this work, I know how much can still be possible when two people are willing to look honestly at what has happened between them and take courageous steps to fix it.
FAQs about Couples Therapy & Marriage Counseling in Boston, Massachusetts
How do we know if couples therapy is right for us?
If you feel stuck in repeating conflicts, emotionally distant, or shaken by a loss of trust, couples therapy can help - even if things still feel manageable right now. I’ve seen again and again that when couples seek support early, before patterns become deeply entrenched, the work can be more effective. You don’t have to spend years unwinding disconnection that’s had time to harden. And if those patterns are already there, it’s not too late. Either way, couples therapy works. If you have a leak - you call a plumber. If you're fighting and struggling in your relationship - you find a couples therapist with a proven track record.
What makes Emotionally Focused Therapy different?
EFT works at the emotional level where lasting change happens. Instead of focusing only on skills or behavior, it helps couples understand the deeper patterns that drive disconnection, so the relationship itself begins to feel safer and more secure. It helps couples speak and listen from the heart, rather than from their defenses. It's amazing the bonding that I see happening in sessions.
Can couples therapy help after infidelity or betrayal?
Yes. Many couples come after a discovery, affair, or long period of secrecy. EFT offers a structured, trauma-informed way to process what happened and begin rebuilding safety and trust, whether your goal is repair or clarity about what comes next.
What if one of us isn’t sure about staying together?
Discernment Counseling is a structured, time-limited (usually 1-5 sessions) process offered online in Boston and all of Massachusetts to help couples decide is they would like to move to separation and divorce or take divorce off the table for 6 months and commit to a robust round of couples therapy.
How long does couples therapy take?
I can’t answer that. (Helpful, right?)
If there has been an affair, secrecy, or betrayal, couples therapy can take time. Trust doesn’t come back in a few sessions - it often takes many for safety to be rebuilt. If there have been years of disconnection, you will both need the support of weekly therapy and the repetition of bonding moments in session to begin feeling like a team again.
I don’t think of couples therapy as something you use only when a catastrophe happens, for a limited amount of time. I think of sessions as a laboratory - a place where you’re supported as you learn a new way of turning toward each other with openness and trust.
Your whole life will be better for it.
Do you work with high-conflict couples?
Yes. I specialize in working with couples who feel stuck in intense, painful patterns. These relationships often have deep bonds underneath the conflict. The work is about helping you access that connection again without getting trapped in the same cycles.
What if we’ve tried therapy before and it didn’t help?
I’m sorry this has been your experience. When couples therapy hasn’t helped in the past, it’s often not because therapy itself doesn’t work - it’s because the approach or the level of experience wasn’t the right fit for what you were facing.
Working with a therapist who has deep experience with couples in crisis matters. High-conflict dynamics, long-standing disconnection, and breaches of trust require more than good intentions and basic skills. They require a clinician who knows how to recognize entrenched patterns quickly, intervene effectively in the moment, and guide couples through emotionally charged conversations without letting sessions spiral or stall.
Can couples therapy help with sex addiction or sexually problematic behaviors?
Yes - couples therapy can be a powerful part of healing from sex addiction, compulsive sexual behaviors, or other problematic sexual patterns. While individual therapy focuses on personal insight and behavior change, couples therapy focuses on the relationship impact: broken trust, emotional pain, fear, and the desire to reconnect.
Is your couples therapy only for heterosexual couples?
Absolutely not. People of all genders and sexual orientations struggle with disconnection and communication difficulties in their relationships. I work with all couples - including queer, non-monogamous, and LGBTQIA+ partners - who are navigating challenges.
Whatever your identity or background, if you’re seeking help and healing, you are welcome here.
I’m afraid I’ll be blamed or shamed in couples therapy. Will I?
No. That’s not how I work.
You’re not here to be shamed. You’re here because something important in your relationship is hurting - and because you care enough to face it. My goal is to help you come closer to your inner world and share that with your partner. If shame arrives as we're exploring who you are - we can explore that too.
What if I’m scared this will make things worse?
It’s okay to be scared. I want to help you find that part inside that wants the cake and the frosting. Everyone deserves loving and supportive relationships, even if that isn't what they felt like in the past. If you've endured more than most, we'll prioritize you feeling safe in sessions - so you can explore what feels good for you in relationships and then we'll work together to help you communicate that to your partner.
You're Backed in Boston
Couples Therapy in Boston, Massachusetts and the Greater Boston Area
I provide specialized online couples therapy for couples throughout Boston and the Greater Boston area. Whether you’re navigating the discovery of an affair, trying to understand what happened, or deciding between divorce or whether your relationship can be repaired, I will help you begin doing the real work of recovery.
I work with couples throughout Boston, Back Bay, Beacon Hill, South End, Fenway, South Boston, Charlestown, Jamaica Plain, Brookline, Newton, Cambridge, Somerville, Arlington, Belmont, Watertown, Wellesley, Needham, and surrounding communities.
My practice is entirely online, making specialized couples therapy accessible whether you're in the heart of Boston or just outside the city. I work with couples throughout Greater Boston and across Massachusetts who are looking for more than just generic marriage counseling. Couples ready to put their hearts back in the game and build a relationship that feels (truly) like fireworks and rainbows.