The Divorced Girl Smiling Podcast Can This Marriage Be Saved?
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Apr 6, 2025 
Dr. Ginny Wright, a clinical psychologist and expert in discernment counseling, shares valuable insights on saving marriages. She explains the unique focus of discernment counseling compared to traditional couples therapy. Listeners learn the telltale signs that may indicate a marriage is beyond saving, including the inability to acknowledge one's contributions and the impact of desperate promises. Ginny also discusses the complexities of ongoing affairs and how they affect the decision-making process for couples.
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Discernment Is Decision-Focused
- Discernment counseling is different from couples therapy and aims to help decide a direction rather than fix the marriage.
- It asks whether partners understand what happened and are willing to examine their role before committing to reconciliation or separation.
Use Short Structured Sessions To Decide
- Use one to five (two-hour) discernment sessions to choose: postpone, separate, or commit to six months of couples therapy with divorce off the table.
- Make the decision about direction, not about guaranteeing the marriage forever.
Use One-On-One Time In Sessions
- Include private one-on-one time in discernment sessions so each spouse can speak openly and be challenged candidly.
- Use the session summaries to keep the couple aligned on issues to reflect on between meetings.
