1) Why sign-up for marriage prep?

Marriage Prep offers couples the opportunity to learn how to have a good marriage. It provides a forum to start the work of preventive maintenance for your relationship. Research shows that couples who work on their marriage from the beginning have a much better chance to have a successful marriage and to avoid divorce than couples who wait until the problems surface.

2) What is the research background for the marriage prep program?

The PREP approach is based on 25 years of research in the field of marital health and success, with much of the specific research conducted at the University of Denver over the past 20 years. Drs. Markman, Stanley, Blumberg, and a host of colleagues and research assistants, have been studying what happy couples do right and what unhappy couples do wrong.

3) What does marriage prep address?

During the four marriage prep sessions we will focus on the following key topics:

Ground rules for protecting your relationship

Communication and conflict management

Problem solving

4) How do couples prepare for their first session?

To begin the marriage prep process, couples are asked to take PREPARE/ENRICH inventory. It is found at www.prepare-enrich.com. You will be sent an email with all the information to take the inventory.

5) What does the PREPARE/ENRICH program cover?

The PREPARE/ENRICH inventory focuses on the following: Communication, Conflict Resolution, Personality Issues, Children and Parenting, Family and Friends, Realistic Expectations, Idealist Distortion, Role Relationship and Spiritual Beliefs.

6) What was most helpful for couples who did premarital counseling?

Couples report that the most valuable result from premarital counseling is learning how to resolve conflict.

7) What do couples argue about the most?

Hands down, the answer is no matter how long the couple has been together, they argue about money first and children second.

8) What are the basic problems facing marrying couples?

Communication difficulties, the tendency to blame one's partner for problems, trouble handling anger, lacking skills to deal with conflict, and last but not least, difficulty sharing and compromising as a couple.

9) How can couples prevent marital distress and divorce?

Couples need to be willing to learn: to be receptive to change, to take responsibility for their part in relationship problems and to listen fully to one's partner. Most importantly, they have to commit to the ONE-PERSON RULE. It only takes one person to feel couple therapy is necessary for both partners to go to therapy!

10) Do you know who doesn't want to discuss problems in a relationship?

Yes, you guessed it men don't want to talk about it. In an interview with 1000 couples, the results show the man withdraws from discussing problems significantly more than the woman. The results were as follows:

Male 42%

Female 26%

Both 16%

Neither 15%

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