Weekend Workshops for Couples
Laura and Michael Silverstein are Now Offering Gottman Informed Couples Retreats and Workshops
Why a Weekend Workshop for Couples?
Healthy, long-lasting love is only attainable when you and your partner deliberately carve out time to prioritize your relationship.
Signing up for a weekend workshop or couples retreat is one of the easiest ways to make sure you don’t let your relationship slide to the back burner. In just two nights and three days, you can relax, unwind, and refresh your relationship.
Couples who love each other deeply are telling us that they don’t necessarily need couples therapy. They simply want a way to unplug and carve out time for their relationship. And if possible, enjoy a weekend getaway that includes seminars for couples. You’ll be far away from home in a romantic location while you fall in love again.
Looking for private weekend couples counseling instead of weekend workshops? Click here to learn more about our intensive couples counseling services. Teresa Thompson, Level III Gottman Couples therpist offers intensive couples therapy on Saturdays and and Sundays.
Couples Retreats Work
You can revive your relationship in 3 days. And the progress can be maintained for as long as you like by implementing the strategies in as little as 10 seconds a day.
The reason weekend workshops and couples retreats have up to a 94% success rate is because of the structure they provide. Life is busy and there are so many competing demands for our time and energy.
When you’ve signed up for something and put it in your calendar, you are more likely to actually sit down and do the work together. Cell phones are off, kids are accounted for and finally, you can focus on each other.
Relationship experts aren’t hiding what we know. You can read books and articles and watch YouTube videos. You might hear people claim that their approach is the best. But the truth is that as long as it’s an evidence-based approach, the advice will be the same. (The research all leads back to the same knowledge and recommendations). We like Gottman couples seminars because we find they provide the most structure and clarity.
Success comes when you sign up for a reputable program, engage in the content, and complete the homework.
Our Love Story
Michael and I met at UConn in 1995 (Go Huskies!). He was finishing his dissertation and I was getting my MSW at the time.
I had been dating lots of wonderful people, but the problem was that none of them knew how to talk about their feelings. I needed a fellow relational psychology nerd who valued emotional vulnerability and who also liked to have fun.
I found him 😊.
We have been married for twenty-one years, have two amazing kids, and still love each other deeply. But I am not an easy person to be married to. I am passionate and opinionated and stubborn.
We are both Gottman-trained couples therapists who have devoted our lives to helping couples revive their relationships. But, even for us, the advice doesn’t work unless you follow it.
I get critical, he gets defensive, and we both can get distracted by the many demands competing for our time and energy. So even though we have deep love and commitment to each other, our relationship could also be at risk if we’re not careful.
That’s why we make sure we schedule couples retreats for ourselves at least once a year. The magic happens when we escape from our regular routine, go to a romantic location, and focus on why we fell in love in the first place.
We have never hosted retreats together before and are very excited to be able to offer something that will help other couples as well as ourselves!
Why Now?
You might not need a retreat now, but in the future, you might look back and wish you had signed up before things got worse.
Prevention is always better than intervention. It’s cheaper, more effective, and way more pleasant.
If you wait until there are problems to carve out time to prioritize your love, it is still possible to turn the ship around, just more expensive, less fun and less pleasant.
Couples therapy with a specialist is extremely expensive. It’s amost impossible to find a highly trained relationship expert with availabilty, who takes your insurance and is affordable. It is often worth the investment if your relationship is at risk of divorce or separation, but we want to help you avoid getting there in the first place.
Michael and I don’t want you to experience unnecessary pain and expenses that can be avoided. We’re not saying our retreats work for all couples, but they do work for most.
How to Get Started
If you are ready to take the next step by signing up for a weekend workshop or couples retreat, here are your next steps:
- Talk to your partner
Share your thoughts about how a weekend getaway might be a great opportunity to have some fun together and learn some healthy relationship habits along the way. Listen to their opinions about the ideasso you can enter the research process together.
2. Consider your specific needs and situation
For some couples, flexibility is highly important, and for others, getting off the grid might be a top priority. Think about what is realistic for you given the constraints of your lifestyle, obligations and learning styles.
3. Choose your program
We understand that everyone’s situation is different, so we have put together three different Gottman retreat options for you:
- Love Is an Action Verb Online Weekend Couples Retreat: Ideal for budget-conscious couples who are self-starters and want to be able to complete the weekend on their own time line from the comfort of their own home.
- Weekend Getaway Couples Retreat at the Himalayan Institute April 5th – 7th: Ideal for experiential learners who are yearning to escape the daily grind and enjoy the seminars for couples in a mountain getaway setting. REGISTER NOW
- Private Intensive Couples Therapy Retreat at our office in Bryn Mawr, PA: Ideal for couples who are looking for a private, personalized program with a licensed Gottman couples therapist.
Price List (Per Couple)
Click the Links Below to Learn More or Register
Click above to register, keep scrolling to learn more.
Weekend Getaway Workshop in the Poconos
This weekend workshop for couples takes place in the beautiful Pocono Mountains. You will enjoy private coaching and skill-building seminars with Gottman trained relationship experts, Laura and Michael Silverstein.
This retreat is all about embracing positivity and enhancing your love. You won’t be listening to long lectures under fluorescent lights, you’ll be walking in the hills, joining like-minded couples, and discovering the benefits of small, interactional exercises.
You’ll also nourish yourselves with vegetarian meals, optional yoga classes and even a bonfire s’mores party!
Weekend Getaway Couples Retreat
Friday April 5th - Sunday April 7th
The Himalayan Institute is a destination retreat center in the Pocono Mountains. A world leader in the field of yoga, meditation, spirituality, and holistic health, the Himalayan Institute is a non-profit international organization dedicated to serving humanity through educational, spiritual, and humanitarian programs.
The consciously simple environment is perfect for a couples retreat for couples who want an escape from distractions and routine.
Laura and Michael will host interactive seminars throughout the weekend with ample free time for spa treatments, rest and relaxation and physical movement.
Registration for this weekend workshop includes access to yoga and meditation classes and three daily vegetarian meals per day.
Friday, April 5th
4:00 Meet and Greet Chai and Cookie Party
5:00 Hatha Yoga (Optional)
7:00 How to Actually Be Happy in Your Relationship Seminar
Saturday, April 6th
7:00 Hatha Yoga (Optional)
8:30 Communicating With Kindness Seminar
11:00 Hike with Laura or Q&A with Michael
1:30 Managing Stress and Increasing Understanding Seminar
3:30 Mindfulness Walk to Sound of Music Hill
5:00 Hatha Yoga (Optional)
7:00 Bonfire S’More Party
Sunday, April 7th
7:00 Hatha Yoga (Optional)
9:00 Back to Reality Seminar
11:30 Free Time for Spa Treatments or Exploring the Grounds
1:30 Chocolate Factory Tour & Tasting
Luxury Valentine's Day Weekend Excursion
Valentine’s Day Weekend Retreat at the Lodge at Woodloch
The Lodge at Woodloch is a luxurious destination spa in the Pocono Mountains. It wins countless awards including the prestigious AAA Four Diamond Award and the Travelers’ Choice Award by TripAdvisor.
The romantic environment is perfect for a couples retreat for couples who want to pamper themselves while also tending to relationship health.
Laura will host a group discussion Friday and Saturday Night, and there are extremely limited opportunities for a 1:1 skills training with Michael and Laura.
You can sign up for private sessions focusing on one of the following two topics: Conflict Management or Empathy Building.
Friday, February 9th, 8:30 PM
Finding Happiness with Your Valentine
Make every day Valentine’s Day! This class will explore what relational psychology can teach us about long-lasting love (and how it’s easier than you might think).
Saturday, February 10th, 8:30 PM
Courageous Conversations: How to Feel More Understood in Your Relationship
No one wants to argue, so couples often avoid difficult conversations. Sometimes this is the best strategy, but other times it can lead to “dumb” arguments or even resentment.
At this event, Laura will give you easy strategies and ground rules to address challenging topics efficiently and productively.
A Little Bit of History
Laura Silverstein, LCSW, Certified Gottman Couples Therapist has been a Gottman scholar since 2009 and has helped thousands of couples find happiness and revive their relationships.
Prior to COVID-19, she assisted John and Julie Gottman with Art and Science of Love workshops in Seattle. Their world-renowned weekend workshops for couples have been shown to achieve results similar to 6 months of couples therapy.
These workshops were very powerful, but they were immense (upwards of 1,000 people in a hotel ballroom). She and and Michael are inspired to create their own, more relaxed and intimate version.
A couples retreat includes everything you get at a relationship workshop but in a beautiful, remote location.
During the seminars for couples, you will learn the skills you need, while also enjoying spa treatments, great food, and lots of time for rest, relaxation and fun.
Meet the Presenters
Ms. Laura Silverstein, LCSW, Certified Couples Therapist, and author of the Love Is an Action Verb Series, is a relationship expert with over 30 years of experience helping committed couples revive their relationships and find more happiness.
You can find her action-oriented advice in places like the New York Times, Real Simple Magazine, and Cosmopolitan. As a seasoned couples therapist, speaker, and trainer, she knows how to help people build connections, manage conflict, and have more fun. Silverstein is the founder and co-owner (together with her husband of 21 years) of Main Line Counseling Partners, a private practice outside of Philadelphia specializing in couples therapy. Silverstein writes and educates with an energetic, humorous, and relatable style. She inspires people to be the best partners they can be.
Dr. Michael Silverstein is a licensed psychologist and Level 3 Gottman Method Couples Therapist with over 30 years of clinical experience. He strongly believes that his clients are the experts in their own lives and works with them to set specific, achievable goals.
Silverstein has a unique interest in Systems Theory and is passionate about helping couples feel more loved. He has a BA from Brown University, MA in Counseling from New York University, and MA and Ph.D degrees in Clinical Psychology from the University of Connecticut (Go Huskies!). He co-owns Main Line Counseling Partners with his life partner in crime, Laura Silverstein.
Michael Silverstein, Ph.D.
Level 3 Gottman-trained Couples Therapist