Couples counseling is its own skill: working with two people who each want to be heard first. This list looks for Charlotte practices that say plainly how they work with couples, which models they are trained in, and what they see, from repeated arguments to an affair to a decision about whether to stay.
Every practice was checked on its own website in September 2026 and is described only by what it says. Two points before you read: many couples practices do not bill insurance, because insurance usually needs one person with a diagnosis, and several offer intensives, longer sessions over a day or two.
If there is violence or you feel unsafe at home, couples sessions are not the first step. Call or text 988 in a crisis, and 911 if anyone is in immediate danger.
How we chose
- It is based in Charlotte and works with couples.
- Its website lists couples or marriage counseling as a service and says which relationship concerns it works with.
- It names the couples method or approach it uses, such as the Gottman Method, Emotionally Focused Therapy or an integrative approach.
- Its website states that its clinicians are licensed, or names their license types, so you can look them up with the state boards.
- It publishes whether it takes insurance for couples work, or explains how payment works.
The ranking
1.Laura Bass Counseling
Charlotte, NC; individuals and couples
This is the practice that publishes this guide.
Best for: Couples who want an integrative approach rather than a single set program
Laura Bass began private practice at Charlotte Psychiatric Associates in 1991, where she added couples therapy, and has practiced independently since 1998. In her words, "there isn't one size that fits all in relationship counseling." Her approach is holistic, humanistic and integrative: talk therapy, with grounding, meditation or journaling added only if the clients choose.
The relationship concerns she lists are couple and relationship difficulties, and infidelity and rebuilding trust. She sees adults and teens aged 17 and over, individually or as couples, is in network with Aetna and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, and is licensed to practice in North and South Carolina. See couples counseling and infidelity counseling.
- In private practice since 1991; works with individuals and couples
- Lists infidelity and rebuilding trust
- In network with Aetna and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield
2.Connect Couples Therapy
Park Road near SouthPark; in person and online
Best for: Couples who want a Gottman-trained team, intensives or discernment counseling
Opened in 2009 by George W. Bitar, Ph.D. and Faith Drew, Ph.D., a husband-and-wife team of Certified Gottman Method Couple Therapists. Its Charlotte page says every therapist there is Gottman-trained and licensed in North Carolina; several also hold EFT, sex therapy or discernment counseling certifications. Services include infidelity recovery using Gottman's Trust Revival Method, premarital counseling, discernment counseling for couples where one partner is unsure about divorce, and a 2-Day Couples Intensive (12 hours). It does not accept insurance. The Park Road office is up a small staircase and the site notes it is not ADA accessible; online sessions are available.
- 4726 Park Road, Suite C
- 2-Day Couples Intensive and discernment counseling
- Does not accept insurance
3.Bareiter Counseling Center
Monroe Road, Charlotte
Best for: Couples who want EFT with attention to family history, and room for faith
Its couples therapists are licensed marriage and family therapists with post-graduate training and certification in Emotionally Focused Therapy. The couples page describes a depth-oriented approach that takes a family history to find the roots of triggers, and treats the relationship itself as the client. It names recurring arguments, impasses over parenting, money or in-laws, and infidelity or addiction, and offers couple intensives. Christian counseling is among its services. Couples therapy is private pay only, since insurance has no code for couples therapy.
- 5101 Monroe Rd
- EFT-certified couples therapists
- Couples therapy is private pay
4.Embrace Relationship Counseling
Fairview Road, Charlotte; solo practice
Best for: Affair recovery and couples intensives with one therapist throughout
The solo practice of Anne Burkart, whose about page lists a marriage and family therapy license and training in the Gottman Method (Level 3), Systemic Affair Recovery Therapy (Level 1), PACT and EMDR. Services are couples therapy, infidelity and relationship recovery, individual relationship therapy, couples intensives and premarital counseling, with daytime, evening and limited Saturday hours. Sessions are self-pay; she can provide a superbill for out-of-network reimbursement.
- 6747 Fairview Road, Suite C
- Gottman Level 3, SART and PACT training
- Self-pay; superbill available
5.Charlotte Therapy Associates
Park Road, SouthPark area; in person and online in NC and SC
Best for: Couples who want EFT and in-network BCBS or Aetna coverage
This practice says its couples work specializes in Emotionally Focused Therapy, looking at the emotional patterns under recurring conflict. Its couples page names repeated arguments, shut-down communication, feeling unheard and fading intimacy, and it offers separate premarital therapy. The team lists licensed marriage and family therapists and counselors. Sessions are at its SouthPark-area office on Park Road or by telehealth in North and South Carolina. It accepts BCBS and Aetna plans and invites questions about services in Spanish.
- 5200 Park Rd., Suite 219
- EFT for couples
- Accepts BCBS and Aetna
6.Charlotte Women's Counseling
East Boulevard, Dilworth, near Freedom Park
Best for: Gottman-based work for new and expecting parents and LGBTQ+ couples
A team of women therapists in Dilworth whose couples work is rooted in the Gottman Method: it starts with a Gottman Relationship Assessment, followed by weekly or every-other-week 53-minute sessions, and the page says all its couples therapists are Gottman-trained. It describes its couples work as LGBTQ+ and BIPOC affirming, and lists conflict, intimacy, blended families, parenting, grief and premarital questions, plus new and expecting couples. Its fees page says most clients use insurance and its billing department files claims.
- 1800 East Blvd.
- Gottman Relationship Assessment to start
- Files insurance claims
7.Therapy Group of Charlotte
South End; in person and by secure video
Best for: Couples, or one partner alone, who want a psychologist-led practice
Its couples page names EFT and the Gottman Method alongside family systems, psychodynamic and cognitive behavioral approaches. It sees married, engaged and dating couples, partners unsure whether to stay, and people who come alone to change something about a relationship. Situations it lists include the same argument on repeat, emotional distance, broken trust and the months before a wedding. Sessions are in South End or by secure video across North Carolina. It is out of network and files claims for clients.
- 1514 South Church Street, Suite 101
- EFT and Gottman Method
- Out of network; files claims
Gottman, EFT or integrative: what the labels mean
The Gottman Method, developed by John and Julie Gottman, usually starts with a structured assessment and works on conflict, friendship and shared meaning. Emotionally Focused Therapy, developed by Sue Johnson, looks at the cycle a couple gets stuck in and the attachment needs underneath it. An integrative therapist draws on several approaches and fits them to the couple. None suits every couple; what matters most is that you both feel the therapist is fair to each of you. See when couples consider counseling.
Questions to ask before the first session
Ask these of any practice, including ours.
- Do you take insurance for couples sessions, or is it private pay with a superbill?
- Which couples model are you trained in, and to what level?
- Will you see each of us alone at any point, and how do you handle secrets?
- What happens if one of us is unsure about staying together?
- If there has been an affair, how do you approach it? See rebuilding trust after infidelity.
Questions people ask
- Does insurance cover couples counseling?
- Often not directly, because insurance usually requires one identified client with a diagnosis. Several practices here are private pay for couples work; others file claims or give superbills, so ask first.
- What is a couples intensive?
- Many hours of couples therapy packed into one or two days instead of weekly sessions. Connect Couples Therapy, Bareiter Counseling Center and Embrace Relationship Counseling list intensives.
- Can I start on my own?
- Often, yes. Therapy Group of Charlotte and Embrace Relationship Counseling both say they see one partner alone. Laura Bass Counseling offers individual counseling as well as couples work.
- How did you choose these practices?
- Each sees couples at a Charlotte office, names its approach, lists licensed clinicians and explains how it charges. We checked every detail on its own website in September 2026; none paid to be included.
Sources
- The Gottman Method, The Gottman Institute
- What is EFT?, ICEEFT
- 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, 988 Lifeline
Published by Laura Bass Counseling as general information, not personal advice or an endorsement. Details change: confirm anything you rely on with the organization itself. Published .