Most couples wait longer than they should. Not because they do not care, but because there is always a reason to put it off. Work is busy. The kids have a season. It has not gotten bad enough yet. Then one ordinary argument lands differently, and you realize the distance between you has been growing for a while.
I am Dr. France Frederick, a licensed clinical psychologist in Fairhope, Alabama. I see couples by secure video anywhere in the state. The work is the same work I do in the office. The difference is that distance and scheduling stop being the reason it does not happen.
Why video often works better for couples
Couples therapy fails to start more often than it fails to work, and the usual reason is logistics. Two busy people, two calendars, one commute neither has time for. Telehealth removes that. You can both join from the same room at home after the kids are down, or from two different places when travel or a work schedule keeps you apart. A spouse on the road for work and one at home can still sit in the same session. That flexibility is often the difference between starting and not.
The couples I work best with
The couples I work best with are ready to do the work. They are willing to look at their own part in the dynamic, not only their partner's. They want a therapist who will challenge them, not just referee. If that sounds like you, we will work well together.
Some couples come in crisis. Others come because they can feel a slow erosion and want to stop it before it becomes permanent. Either way, the willingness to show up is what matters.
A question I get early
Can my marriage be saved? That is not a question I can answer before we meet, and I would be cautious of anyone who answers it too quickly. What I can tell you is that many marriages that felt beyond repair have been rebuilt through honest, committed work. The outcome depends on what both people are willing to do, not on where things stand the day you walk in. And some couples do their best, most honest work and still decide to part. That can be the right answer too. The point of the room is clarity, not a predetermined verdict.
How telehealth works
A secure browser link arrives before each session. There is no app to download. You need a private space, a stable connection, and ideally a laptop rather than a phone. If you are joining from two locations, each of you uses your own link.
Sessions are fifty minutes. The first session runs longer, ninety minutes, so there is room to hear both of you and understand the pattern before we start working it. Because telehealth is licensed at the state level, both partners need to be physically located in Alabama during sessions.
Insurance and fees
I file claims with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama as a non-participating provider. Whatever BCBSAL pays is credited against the full session fee, and you are responsible for the difference. For all other carriers I am out of network. You pay the full fee at the time of service and can submit a superbill, provided on request, for any out-of-network reimbursement your plan allows. Specific fees are discussed during the first phone call.
Related
If you are weighing in-person sessions at the Fairhope office, see couples therapy in Fairhope. For the full picture of statewide video care, including individual work, see online therapy in Alabama.