Sarah J. Beck, LMHC Certified Imago Relationship Therapist
Transforming Your Relationship |
IMAGO RELATIONAL THERAPY
A world-leading approach
Imago is based on the best-selling book "Getting The Love You Want", by Harville Hendrix, PhD who co-founded Imago Relationships International together with his partner, Helen LaKelly Hunt, PhD.
Imago weaves together leading psychological theories and practical observations on the experience of love, offering an approach to relationships that is both compelling and easy to understand
Imago Relationship Therapy, originated by Dr.
Harville Hendrix with his wife, Helen LaKelly Hunt,
offers a unique theory of love relationships, one
that many of us find really makes sense.
"Imago" is the Latin word for image and refers to
the composite image in our unconscious of our
caretakers – mom and dad, or whoever raised us.
This composite image includes the positive and
negative character traits of our caretakers, our
experiences with them, our best memories and our
most painful ones, and most importantly, our
unmet childhood needs. We take this composite
image into adulthood where we find ourselves
attracted to and attractive to an "Imago match."
You may think of this as nature [God] providing
you with a partner UNIQUELY INCAPABLE OF
MEETING YOUR NEEDS!! This is not done to
frustrate you, but to provide an environment
where the old issues can get triggered with
the intention of having a different outcome that
brings growth and healing..
Unfortunately, without becoming conscious of this
process and learning some key skills to resolve the
frustrations, many relationships seemed destined
to be painful.
Imago Relationship Therapy utilizes a variety of
processes to teach couples and singles, desiring
an intimate union, some key concepts:
- Identify ways you may be interfering in getting the love you want because of how you’ve habitually protected yourself.
- See conflict as growth trying to happen and learn how to get needs met in a productive way.
- Learn the core communication skill – The Intentional Dialogue – which allows you to hear and be heard, and restore the connection that gets lost during moments of conflict.
- Re-romanticize a relationship where passion, affection and intimacy may have become problematic or non-existent.
- Bring out the best in each other and in one’s self, turning the relationship from one of conflict and frustration to one of healing and growth.
As Harville says, "We are born in relationship. We
are wounded in relationship. And we are healed in
relationship." Imago Relationship therapy provides
a powerful and productive pathway towards
healing and wholeness.
By Jill Fein Baker
