The Couples Center - Berkeley, California

Liz B.

Gal is an amazing therapist and a calming presence, and working with him over the past two years has truly been an investment in myself and my relationship. Even though 2020 has been full of surprises, my partner and I have grown as individuals and our partnership has become more understanding, compassionate, and curious despite the chaos of the past year. I seriously appreciate everything Gal has done for my partner and me, and look forward to supplementing therapy with some of his workshops in the future. I can't speak highly enough of Gal and would totally recommend him to anyone.

De C.

My partner and I have put a lot of work into our relationship over the past year and a half after having recurring tension arise. We've introspected, read books, come up with tools, and seen a couples therapist. We wanted to give the Love Made Simple workshop run by Gal and Liron a shot as a way to invest a weekend into our relationship.

The workshop was validating in that it provided a concise and actionable summary of all the useful material my partner and I have come across through other methods, and we both left with new tools to communicate with each other in healthier ways.

We were very happy to have attended the workshop and highly recommend it to any couple interested in deepening their relationship (which should be every couple!).

G W.

My partner and I have been to a few couples workshops. This one run by the Couples Center is by far the best one that we have been to. It really helped us to clearly see our pattern in arguments and gave us the tools to stop the negative cycle. The workshop is really well layed out and values the input from each partner. It is well worth the money. Our relationship is better already.

Kyler M.

I attended some of The Couples Center's online events that they hosted during Shelter In Place. They were done very well by Gal and Liron, helpful and there were a lot of couples that attended!

I also worked with Gal for almost 2 years and had a very positive experience. I'd recommend trying out The Couples Center!

Natalie C.

My husband and I have been married almost 17 years. We are not in conflict, but realized that we were not as close as we were when we first married. Life, kids, jobs, all of that gets in the way, sometimes...At first we thought we would try to have weekly counseling sessions with Gal and Liron, but the timing was impossible! My husband and I couldn't even find one hour a week to meet consistently with counselors. It is hard to find that time! But then we heard about the Love Made Simple two day workshop that they hold in Mill Valley. It is pretty intense, and it isn't cheap up front. HOWEVER it is worth every penny. If we had been doing traditional counseling, it would have taken us months and much much much more money to get to where we got at the end of two days in this seminar.

Gal and Liron touched on many important topics that are sometimes hard to bring up. But we were always supported, and given words and techniques to use, to make it easier. There were so many breakthroughs in the class. My husband and I came out of the experience amazed by how much closer we felt, and how much stronger we felt to move forward. The leaders of the class were warm and funny and easy to follow, and shared many personal stories to underscore the points they were making. They are both psychotherapists and they also had about five therapists on hand, to help move around the room and listen to couples (with their permission) and help out in tough spots. Some were trained in trauma, in case something underlying might surface. It all felt very safe and supportive.

I also need to add that my husband and I were worried that it would be a very touchy feely, woo woo, share your feelings kind of thing, and were kind of dreading all of the prolonged eye gazing, mushy talk that we were pretty sure we would have to share in a group setting. It wasn't like that at all. All sharing was done one on one with each other. It was very private. The only time we heard other peoples' stories was when they chose to share them. And those times were very powerful. So if you are worried that it will be some sort of 12 step program meeting...it isn't. Not at all!

If you are on the fence about this class, or want to do couples counseling, but just can't find the time - I highly recommend it. Both my husband and I found it immensely helpful.

Daniela K.

The couples center is a great place to go for therapy. I know some of the psychotherapist that work for them and they are very knowledgable and have an in-depth understanding of relationships, which informs all of their work with couples.

Gal and Liron who run the couples center and offer great workshops and date night events for all couples are great facilitators and are very insightful about couples work.

I highly recommend the couples center.

Ben

I'm very skeptical of any form of self help or spirituality. Although my visits with Gal had elements of both, I can't argue with the results. I didn't really believe it was possible for people to change as much for the better as I did through my work with Gal.

Michael T.

Eitan at the couples center is great! He's super efficient, sensitive, direct, and like, great!