Couples therapy · Relational Life Therapy

You love each other. You keep having the same fight.

Couples who love each other can still feel chronically misunderstood. Couples therapy is where you can start to change that.

Book a free 20-minute consultation How couples work is different

Karen Anderson, MS, LMFT, smiling, seated in an orange chair

Virtual couples therapy in Nevada and WashingtonBoth partners need to be located in Nevada or Washington during each session.

Does this sound like the two of you?

Conversations don't land the way either of you expects.
You end up explaining more than you want to, and still don't feel heard.
The same argument comes back with a different topic.
One of you pushes for more, and the other pulls away.
You're respected and capable everywhere else, and reactive at home.
You've read the books and tried the tools. The pattern keeps winning.

Not because you're missing something obvious. Because something deeper hasn't been identified yet.

How couples work is different

Most people assume conflict is about communication. It isn't.

It's about what happens inside each of you before you speak: whether you brace, shut down, over-function or pull away when pressure rises.

Karen is trained in Relational Life Therapy (RLT), Terry Real's approach, which is active and direct. She works with both of you in the room, speaks plainly to each partner, and helps each of you see your own part in the pattern.

The goal isn't deciding who's right. It's a relationship where you're both treated with full respect.

From the desk of Karen

Before you choose a couples therapist, I think you deserve to know a little about the person you're inviting into some of the most private conversations of your life.

I've been with the same person for 33 years. We raised two children together. We've buried parents, celebrated the milestones, and sat with each other through moments when there weren't any words. We've dried each other's tears.

I know from living it, not from a textbook, that staying close over decades doesn't happen just because two people love each other. Keeping tenderness and a sexual relationship alive with the same person takes attention and forgiveness. It takes being willing to look at yourself, not only at your partner, and more often than you'd think, a sense of humor.

I don't have it all figured out. I'll still bring you what 18 years of practice and 33 years of partnership have taught me, and I'll be honest with you the whole way through.

Most therapists won't volunteer any of this, but it's okay to ask about a therapist's own relationship history before you trust them with yours. Some will keep parts of it private, and that's fine. You should still feel free to ask.

With warmth,

Karen

Ready to talk about what's happening between you?

Book a free 20-minute consultation

Why this work exists

For years, I sat in rooms where intelligent people could not understand each other.

Executives who led companies but couldn't reach their partners.

Couples who loved each other but felt chronically misunderstood.

High-capacity individuals who were respected publicly and reactive privately.

They were not lacking insight. They were misaligned in how they were positioned.

I began to see that many relational breakdowns were not about personality, pathology, or even intention. They were about stance: where someone believes they are standing in the relationship, where they are actually standing, and the gap between the two.

That gap creates tension. Close the gap, and the dynamic changes.

Over time, my work evolved from symptom reduction to relational calibration. Less focus on "who is wrong." More focus on how power, responsibility, and regulation are flowing between people.

This is the work I do now. It is precise. It is grounded. It requires accountability.

And it changes how you move in the rooms that matter most.

In their words

What changed

A few former clients chose to share what their work made possible. The change in each story belongs to the people who did the work.

A common language

Couples therapy

"Karen has taught us to speak a common language so that we can actually communicate without stress and drama."
A married couple, after four years of work together
Love, again

Couples and family therapy

"…my marriage was saved and my wife and I found love again."
A spouse and parent
Calm, from the inside

Individual therapy, then couples

"Throughout 6 months we worked through my anxiety with both traditional therapy, hypnosis, and EMDR. By the end of 6 months my anxiety had tremendously improved."
A former client who later came in with their fiancé

Shared unsolicited by former clients. Names are removed for privacy. Every person and relationship is different, and no particular result is promised.

Kind words

In their own words, unedited

Notes former clients have shared over the years, exactly as they wrote them.

"C... and I have been clients of Karen for the past four years and have been so happy with the results that we have recommended her many times to other couples. Karen has taught us to speak a common language so that we can actually communicate without stress and drama. I firmly believe that if we had not received couples therapy from Karen we would not be a happily married couple today."

"I began seeing Karen for my anxiety issues and panic attacks initially. The therapy was open, casual and she was inviting and non-judgmental. Throughout 6 months we worked through my anxiety with both traditional therapy, hypnosis, and EMDR. By the end of 6 months my anxiety had tremendously improved. I felt so satisfied with Karen and her work that I began seeing her to work on my relationship. My fiancé and I saw her to help us with communication. The tools she gave us were extremely helpful and she is an extremely knowledgeable resource. I would recommend Karen Anderson to anyone struggling with anxiety or any type of emotional problem as well as for anyone seeking relationship counseling. Karen is truly a phenomenal person and my life has not been the same since working with her!"

"...Karen Anderson was the best thing to happen to my family since my kids were born...my marriage was saved and my wife and I found love again. I recommend anyone with family issues. You will receive great information and be more knowledgeable in your relationship"

My approach to couples therapy

Couples therapy with me is an accepting, nonjudgmental space, and it's a collaborative process for both of you.

I never take for granted what it means to be invited into a couple's life. My job is to make the room safe enough for the two of you to do some uncomfortable work, because changing a pattern you've lived in for years is uncomfortable. And couples therapy is work. We'll still go at a pace that works for both of you, and neither of you will be pushed to share more than you're ready to.

In our sessions, each of you can say what you need to say without a filter or fear of judgment, including the things that haven't been easy to say at home. I'm not there to decide who's right. My role is to hold space for both of you, be honest with each of you, and help you decide together where we focus, so you can see the pattern more clearly, change it, and feel the relationship moving where you both want it to go.

What to expect

How we'll work together

1. A free consultation

A 20-minute call to talk about what's happening, what you want to be different, and whether couples therapy with Karen is the right fit for both of you.

2. Getting the full picture

Early sessions look at the pattern you're caught in, how each of you learned to protect yourself, and what you each want the relationship to become.

3. Changing the dance

Sessions focus on what happens between you in real time: naming the pattern, practicing new ways to speak and listen, and repairing when things go wrong.

Fees

Couple or family session50 minutes$250

Standard therapy session50 minutes$200

Schedule a complimentary consultation Book with Karen

Booking is through Jane, my secure online scheduler.

Cancellation policy: the full fee is charged for sessions cancelled or rescheduled with less than 24 hours' notice, and for no-shows. Exceptions are made for unavoidable conflicts and emergencies. When you enter into therapy with us, we commit to you, and we ask you to be equally invested.

A note on safety. If there is violence, threats, or fear of your partner in your relationship, couples therapy may not be the safe first step. Please tell Karen privately during your consultation, and she'll help you find the right support. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is available 24/7 at 1-800-799-7233. If you are in crisis, call or text 988.

Meet Karen

Karen Anderson, MS, LMFT

A licensed clinician who helps people live more relationally awake.

With 18+ years supporting individuals and couples, Karen integrates evidence-based relational skills, trauma care, nervous-system-informed practices, and a mind–body–spirit lens.

Alongside her clinical practice, Karen teaches at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. For 10 years she taught the university's course on successful couple and marital relationships, and she now teaches in the graduate program. During her doctoral work she co-authored UNLV's Graduate Certificate in Medical Family Therapy. Karen's current research examines intersectional privilege awareness and its role in clinician development.

Life Wide Awake™ remains her personal philosophy: live with presence, listen deeply, and re-author what comes next with authenticity, clarity, and compassion.

Licensed MFT in Nevada and Washington
18+ years with couples and individuals
Taught couple and marital relationships at UNLV for 10 years
Trained in RLT, Gottman Method and Imago
AAMFT Clinical Fellow and Approved Supervisor

See full credentials

Education

PhD in Marriage and Family Therapy, doctoral candidate
Master of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy
Bachelor of Arts in Economics

Licenses

Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Nevada State Board of Examiners for Marriage and Family Therapy (#01148)
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Washington State (LF61158105)
Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor and Supervisor, Nevada, 2012–2023

Certifications and awards

Certified EMDR Trauma Therapist
Certified Clinical Trauma Professional
Certified Daring Way™ Facilitator (Brené Brown's Daring Greatly and Rising Strong workshops)
UNLV Excellence in Marriage and Family Therapy Practice Award, 2008

Couples and relationship training

Taught successful couple and marital relationships at UNLV for 10 years; now teaches in the graduate program
Relational Life Therapy, Practicum 1
Gottman Relationship Institute, Levels 1 and 2
Imago Therapy trained
Parenting Coordinator Services Provider, Eighth Judicial District Family Court

Additional training

Parts and Memory Training
EMDR advanced training: dissociation, mindfulness awareness, resonance in psychotherapy, and complementing traditional addiction treatment
Polyvagal-informed trauma therapy

Professional memberships

AAMFT Clinical Fellow
AAMFT Approved Supervisor
Nevada Board-approved Marriage and Family Therapist Supervisor
EMDRIA Clinical Member

"A long relationship isn't built on getting everything right. It's built, in part, on learning how to find your way back to each other when things go wrong."

Book a free 20-minute consultation Individual therapy

Licensed in Nevada and Washington. Therapy is available to adults located in those two states.