Couples Therapy Policy, Disclosure Policy, and No-Secrets Policy

Couples therapy is a collaborative process intended to support the relationship and/or the growth and development of the skills needed within the relationship, the individuals, or both.

This may include identifying and addressing patterns of conflict, disconnection, communication difficulties, betrayal, addiction-related harm, relational distress, and other challenges affecting the relationship and the wellbeing of each partner.

This work also honors each partner's struggles, challenges, experiences, history, needs, emotions, and mental health concerns that they bring into the therapeutic process.

When we provide couples therapy, the relationship is considered a treatment unit. The therapist's role is to support the health, safety, and integrity of the couple, as well as the integrity of the individual work when individual sessions are part of treatment, rather than align with one partner over the other.

At times, the therapist may work with both partners individually as well as with the couple together, or may work with one partner individually and the couple as a unit. When this occurs, the therapist will make clear what is being treated as individual work, what is being treated as couples work, and what aspects of disclosure may or may not be shared as part of the therapeutic process.

In some situations, certain information may not be shared immediately as part of infidelity work, betrayal work, addiction-related treatment, or other relational healing work. There may be times when important information is not addressed immediately in the couples space. The purpose of that delay is not to protect secrecy, but to support safety, regulation, readiness, and a more therapeutic disclosure process. When clinically indicated, some elements may be held temporarily in order to allow for stabilization, skill development, emotional regulation, and a more therapeutic disclosure process. In those circumstances, disclosure may be addressed later, at the right time, in the right process, and with the right clinical guardrails in place to support the safety and wellbeing of both partners.

Information shared in couples therapy is treated as confidential and will not be disclosed to third parties without appropriate written authorization, except where disclosure is permitted or required by law. Because couples therapy involves more than one person in treatment, confidentiality works differently than it does in individual therapy. Information shared in sessions may become part of the couples treatment record.

Thrive Beyond Trauma Counseling maintains a no-secrets policy in couples therapy.

This means that when one partner shares information individually with the therapist, that information may not remain permanently confidential from the other partner if it is relevant to the couples work, the goals of treatment, the safety of either partner, or the integrity of the therapeutic process.

The therapist is not acting as a secret keeper. Rather, the therapist functions as a gatekeeper of the therapeutic process, using clinical judgment to determine whether, when, and how information should be addressed within the couples work, through a structured disclosure process, or within the clinically appropriate limits of that disclosure process.

This applies not only in cases of infidelity, but also in work involving sex addiction, betrayal trauma, compulsive sexual behavior, disclosure-related treatment, and other clinically significant relational harm.

When appropriate, the therapist will support, prepare, and guide the disclosing partner toward bringing the information forward directly. This may include helping the partner build the emotional regulation, language, insight, accountability, and relational capacity needed to participate in a therapeutic disclosure process. In some cases, a more structured or formal disclosure process may be recommended.

If one or both partners have made a decision regarding separation or divorce and that decision is being withheld while couples therapy continues under the premise of active relational work, that information may become clinically significant to the integrity of treatment. In such situations, the therapist may strongly recommend that the information be disclosed within the therapeutic process. If a partner refuses to disclose clinically significant information necessary for the integrity of the couples work, the therapist may determine that couples therapy can no longer continue in its current form and may refer out, transfer, or terminate the case as clinically appropriate. At no point would the therapist disclose that information on behalf of the partner or break confidentiality on that basis alone. However, the therapist may communicate that there are elements affecting treatment that are not being disclosed and that, as a result, continuation of couples therapy is no longer clinically appropriate.

If a partner needs a setting in which information will remain fully confidential from the other partner, separate individual therapy with a different clinician may be more appropriate.

1. 1The therapist does not break confidentiality simply because one partner is withholding clinically significant information.
2. 2The therapist may strongly recommend that clinically significant information be disclosed within the therapeutic process when it affects the integrity, safety, or direction of the couples work.
3. 3If a partner refuses to disclose information that is necessary for the integrity of the couples work, that refusal may make couples therapy no longer clinically appropriate.
4. 4If this occurs, the therapist may pause treatment, refer out, transfer the case, or terminate couples therapy, based on clinical judgment.
5. 5At no point is the therapist's role to disclose that information on behalf of the partner.

If treatment can no longer continue because clinically significant information is being withheld, the therapist may communicate that there are undisclosed elements affecting treatment and that, for this reason, continuation of couples therapy is no longer clinically appropriate, without revealing the undisclosed content itself.

Confidentiality may be broken, or information may be disclosed without consent, when disclosure is permitted or required by law, including but not limited to the following circumstances:

• when there is reasonable suspicion of abuse or neglect of a child
• when there is reasonable suspicion of abuse, neglect, or exploitation of a vulnerable or dependent adult
• when there is a serious risk of harm to self
• when there is a serious risk of harm to another person
• when disclosure is required by court order, subpoena, or other legal process
• when disclosure is otherwise required or permitted by law for health care operations, billing, insurance, consultation, or supervision

Important information may also be withheld temporarily in the moment, when clinically indicated, in order to protect the safety of one or both partners and to support a more appropriate therapeutic process. Any such decision is based on the therapist's clinical judgment and is not intended to serve as ongoing concealment.

Because the relationship is the treatment unit, authorization from both partners is generally required before releasing records related to couples therapy to a third party, unless disclosure is otherwise required by law.

If records are requested through legal proceedings, the therapist may assert applicable privilege protections to the extent permitted by law. However, a court may order disclosure in certain circumstances.

Participation in couples therapy is voluntary. Either partner may choose to discontinue treatment at any time.

The therapist may also recommend pausing, referring out, transferring, or discontinuing couples therapy if, in the therapist's clinical judgment, the work is no longer appropriate or effective. This may include situations involving ongoing deception that is not being therapeutically addressed, active addiction without meaningful engagement in recovery, significant safety concerns, coercion, violence, untreated severe mental health symptoms, or situations in which one or both partners have already decided to separate or divorce and couples therapy is no longer the appropriate form of treatment.