In this webinar, Dr. Lisa Firestone will explore collaborative communication as a powerful tool for couples to gain a deeper understanding of the other and achieve more balance and closeness in their relationship.

Many of our relationship problems come down to the way we communicate. In order for two people with two completely different minds and two complex personal histories to live harmoniously, there needs to be a certain amount of balance and understanding. Collaborative communication offers a pathway to achieve just that.

Collaborative communication focuses on all the ways we give off information to another person, many of which we aren’t even aware. It outlines a series of steps you can take to draw your partner out, understand from their perspective, and align your state with theirs. It also provides you with methods to express your perspective in a manner where you are more likely to be heard.

By enhancing the ability to communicate with more vulnerability, openness, and empathy, couples can form much stronger relationships where each person feels known and understood by the other.

The presentation will focus on techniques to:

• Become a better, more attuned, and less defensive listener
• Express ourselves in ways that allow our partner to know and feel for us
• Understand how what we hear and how we react during conflict is influenced by the lens of our past
• Recognize our triggers and why they get set off in our communication
• Repair after ruptures in communication
• Communicate feedback in ways that lead to closeness rather than distance
• Find pathways to calm down and communicate from a more effective place
• Tune in to our partner and align our state with theirs
• Gain insight and empathy into a partner’s perspective, while inviting the same from them

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe techniques of collaborative communication between couples.
2. Discuss strategies to help clients recognize and name their emotional triggers in order to lessen their reactivity toward their partner.
3. List tools to help couples calm down and enhance emotional regulation when feeling triggered.
4. Describe methods to repair after a rupture in communication.

Continuing Education Information