1. What is the cost range for marriage counseling services in San Francisco, CA?
Gal Szekely, MA, LMFT - THE COUPLES CENTER
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Brendan Neff-Hall, MA, MFT - BRENDAN HALL THE LOVE THERAPIST
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Fiachra Figs O'Sullivan, MA, LMFT - EMPATHI
It is just the two of us now, my wife Teale Taxis and me, and our sessions are $400 to $600. Mine is $600. We can provide superbills for out-of-network reimbursement. I would gently push back on treating this as a price comparison, though. A fee is saturated in meaning: it is an indicator of the therapist's expertise, experience and track record. If the average fee is $200 and a therapist charges $600, that therapist is stating through the fee that they believe they can deliver at least three times the value. Your relationship is too important to treat as a commodity.
2. What types of therapy approaches do you use for couples?
Gal Szekely, MA, LMFT - THE COUPLES CENTER
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Brendan Neff-Hall, MA, MFT - BRENDAN HALL THE LOVE THERAPIST
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Fiachra Figs O'Sullivan, MA, LMFT - EMPATHI
I am certified in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), a gold-standard approach rooted in attachment theory, systems theory and experiential psychotherapy. I stick to this single model rather than an eclectic mix, because blending random techniques only treats surface symptoms. Communication skills, chore charts and mediation are coaching on quicksand. Real therapy goes underneath the content of the fight to the attachment bond under the waterline. In my office I do not mediate or teach communication scripts. I help you see the negative cycle you co-create, slow down the speed of the fight, and step underneath your protective armour. We move from debating who is right to experiencing what is actually happening in your bodies in real time. One proven model creates the deep safety a relationship needs to change from the inside out.
3. What qualifications and licenses do you hold in San Francisco, CA?
Gal Szekely, MA, LMFT - THE COUPLES CENTER
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Brendan Neff-Hall, MA, MFT - BRENDAN HALL THE LOVE THERAPIST
- Submit now
Fiachra Figs O'Sullivan, MA, LMFT - EMPATHI
I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in California (LMFT #79062) with a Master's degree in counseling, and a Certified Emotionally Focused Couples Therapist through ICEEFT, the international certifying body for EFT. I have spent 17 years in the room with couples. I co-founded Empathi with my wife, Teale Taxis, LMFT #100084, who is a Certified EFT Supervisor, the level above certified therapist: she trains, supervises and certifies other EFT therapists. Between us we run a practice at 999 Sutter Street that stays full at the highest rates in San Francisco.
4. How do you help couples strengthen their relationship?
Gal Szekely, MA, LMFT - THE COUPLES CENTER
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Brendan Neff-Hall, MA, MFT - BRENDAN HALL THE LOVE THERAPIST
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Fiachra Figs O'Sullivan, MA, LMFT - EMPATHI
I help couples catch the fight before the cascade. When you get stuck, you do not need communication worksheets. You need a bird's-eye view of your cycle, what I call the Waltz of Pain. I stop the movie of your argument, step between your protective armours, and help you look at the system you co-create. One partner retreats into the Penthouse of logic or silent withdrawal to protect against feeling like a failure. The other pursues or criticises because they are terrified of being abandoned. I guide both of you down into the Basement of your actual, vulnerable feelings. When you see each other's tender heart instead of each other's armour, your nervous systems settle. You shift from two separate suffering bubbles into one shared one, and realise you are allies fighting a common cycle.
5. Do you offer online counselling?
Gal Szekely, MA, LMFT - THE COUPLES CENTER
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Brendan Neff-Hall, MA, MFT - BRENDAN HALL THE LOVE THERAPIST
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Fiachra Figs O'Sullivan, MA, LMFT - EMPATHI
Yes. We see couples in person at 999 Sutter Street in San Francisco, and online throughout California. The work is the same either way: the cycle shows up on a screen just as clearly as it does on a couch.
6. How many couples have you helped through counseling sessions?
Gal Szekely, MA, LMFT - THE COUPLES CENTER
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Brendan Neff-Hall, MA, MFT - BRENDAN HALL THE LOVE THERAPIST
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Fiachra Figs O'Sullivan, MA, LMFT - EMPATHI
More than 3,000 couples over 17 years, from tech founders to people who have never told anyone else what happens in their marriage. Beyond the therapy room, the Empathi relationship assessment has now been completed by more than 58,000 people, which is the largest relationship dataset ever published by a practising therapist. It is how I can tell you that nearly three in four couples are stuck in the same fight: one partner pursuing while the other shuts down.
7. How can couples prepare for a marriage counseling session?
Gal Szekely, MA, LMFT - THE COUPLES CENTER
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Brendan Neff-Hall, MA, MFT - BRENDAN HALL THE LOVE THERAPIST
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Fiachra Figs O'Sullivan, MA, LMFT - EMPATHI
Do not build a legal brief. The biggest mistake people make before walking in is preparing a prosecutor's case, compiling a list of grievances and rehearsing arguments to prove their partner is the villain. If you come in looking for a judge or jury, you will only harden your armour. I am not here to decide who is right or who is the bad guy. Before our session, drop the legal brief, leave the Representative at home, and bring only your willingness to be curious about your own heart. If your partner is reluctant to come, do not ask them for a six-month commitment. Ask for one single sixty-minute session.
8. How do you maintain client confidentiality during sessions?
Gal Szekely, MA, LMFT - THE COUPLES CENTER
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Brendan Neff-Hall, MA, MFT - BRENDAN HALL THE LOVE THERAPIST
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Fiachra Figs O'Sullivan, MA, LMFT - EMPATHI
Everything you share is protected by the confidentiality that comes with a licensed clinical practice, and we handle records and sessions accordingly. Where I differ from many therapists is between the two of you. I maintain a strict no-secrets policy, because I treat the relationship itself as my client. If one of you holds a major secret, an active affair or hidden debt, it acts as a competing interest that destroys safety under the waterline. I will never collude with one partner against the other. I will not go behind your back to expose something shared in a solo check-in, but I will not hold a secret that undermines the couples work either. If one exists, I pause the joint process and support you in bringing that truth into the room safely.
9. How long does marriage counseling usually take?
Gal Szekely, MA, LMFT - THE COUPLES CENTER
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Brendan Neff-Hall, MA, MFT - BRENDAN HALL THE LOVE THERAPIST
- Submit now
Fiachra Figs O'Sullivan, MA, LMFT - EMPATHI
My goal is to get you to a place where you do not need me as soon as possible. I am not interested in keeping you in therapy forever. In an ideal situation, meaningful transformation happens in roughly 10 to 12 weekly sessions. What determines the timeline is how quickly both of you can drop your performative masks, settle your nervous systems and step into mutual vulnerability. If there is deep trauma or past betrayal, we go slow so we can go fast. To anyone who wants a precise number: it takes as long as it takes for your body to register safety with your partner. Once you can co-regulate each other and repair your own disconnections, you graduate and leave my office.
10. What can couples expect during their first counseling session?
Gal Szekely, MA, LMFT - THE COUPLES CENTER
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Brendan Neff-Hall, MA, MFT - BRENDAN HALL THE LOVE THERAPIST
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Fiachra Figs O'Sullivan, MA, LMFT - EMPATHI
Your first session is not a courtroom, and I am not a judge who will decide who is to blame. It is also not the place where we solve every argument or logistical problem on your list. A first session is designed to slow everything down, build safety, and let you experience what it feels like to be in an alliance with me. I get to know your story, listen to how you fight, and help you see your negative cycle in real time. I show both of you that your reactions make complete sense given your attachment fears. You can expect to walk out with a clear, shared map of your cycle, feeling deeply understood, and realising your partner is not the enemy.
