Anger and Verbal Abuse
in Couples Therapy

David Woodsfellow, PhD 

Friday July 20th

Anger and Verbal Abuse are serious problems in a relationship.  Just like physical abuse needs to stop right away, verbal abuse also need to stop right away.  The therapeutic problem is how to do that.  Often, angry verbal abusers don't even think they've got a problem.  Often they feel their anger is justified, and they see the fault and problem in their partner, not themselves.  So it's the partner who needs to change, not them.  Angry blamers like this are hard to change.  Entitled, narcissistic grandiose people are hard to change.  Abusers are hard to change. 

But we've got to try.  Often spouses bring these angry verbal abusers into treatment hoping and praying that we can help them get the abuse to stop.  But how? 

That's what this workshop is all about.  Using a new model, Relationship Empowerment Therapy, you will see a way of conceptualizing abuse in terms of boundaries and self-esteem.  Then you will see an intervention of empowering the victimized spouse and creating powerful motivation for the angry abuser to change their ways.

Of course, this doesn't work for every couple.  But in my 25 years of doing therapy, this approach succeeds dramatically more than any other model I've seen.

This workshop will help you

1. Distinguish between healthy anger and unhealthy verbal abuse
2. Explain different sub-types of verbal abuse
3. Use Terry Real’s Relationship Grid to map different patterns of verbal abuse
4. Use the Time-Out method of repair
5. Empower victims of verbal abuse with healthier self-esteem and healthier boundaries
6. Help perpetrators of verbal abuse become more respectful and appropriate
7. Use the clients’ relationship as leverage for making significant, substantial change

David Woodsfellow, PhD is a licensed psychologist whose practice is 100% couples therapy.  He has been seeing 100% couples for 20 years.  David was educated at Harvard, Antioch, UC Santa Barbara, Georgia State, and UCLA Medical School.  He has been personally trained by Harville Hendrix, John Gray, John Gottman, Terry Real, and Sue Johnson.

The Woodsfellow Institute for Couples Therapy is approved by The American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists.  The Woodsfellow Institute for Couples Therapy maintains responsibility for this program and its content. The Woodsfellow Institute receives no financial support for this workshop, this program, or this instructor. This workshop is on an intermediate and advanced level. It is appropriate for psychologists, social workers, marriage and family therapists, and counselors.

Cancellation policy: If you need to cancel, we will credit your payment to any future workshop of ours.  However we do not offer refunds.

Continuing Education

3 hours of continuing education credit will be available. APA-approved for Psychologists, Core hours for Marriage and Family Therapists, and Counselors. Related hours for Social Workers.