James McCracken, LCSW, PLLC
  • Home
  • Services
    • Couples Therapy | Marriage Counseling
    • Family Therapy
    • Individual Psychotherapy
    • Supervision/Consultation >
      • EFT Supervision
      • Level Up Group for EFT Supervisors
      • EFT Supervision of Supervision
      • Clinical Social Work Supervision
    • Online Therapy
  • Areas of Practice
    • Emotionally Focused Therapy
    • Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy
    • Discernment Counseling
    • Couple and Marital Distress
    • Premarital Assessment & Counseling
    • Affair Recovery
    • Divorce Recovery
    • Family Conflict between Parents and Adult Children
  • About
    • About James
    • Therapy Approach
    • Philosophy of Supervision
    • Associate Practitioners
    • Practice Policies, Fee, & Insurance
    • FAQ
  • Contact
  • Client Resources
    • Client Portal
    • Additional Helpful Resources
    • Consent for Release of Information

"To Stay or Go?" A Critical Question for Ailing Relationships

If you or your partner are considering separation or divorce/termination, but are not completely sure which path to pursue, Discernment Counseling was designed for you.  Discernment Counseling is a research-validated, blame-free way of helping couples where one person is “leaning out” of the relationship—and not sure that couples therapy can help--and the other is “leaning in”—that is, interested in salvaging the marriage. In this approach I help you decide whether to
  1. enter couples therapy to restore your relationship to security,
  2. move towards separation or divorce, or
  3. take a structured time-out and decide later.

Discernment Counseling aims to help you gain clarity and confidence about a direction, based on a deeper understanding of how your relationship got to the possibility of termination, and possibilities for the future.  The goal in this approach is not to solve your relationship problems but to see if they are solvable in couples therapy. You will each be treated with compassion and respect no matter how you are feeling about your marriage at the moment. No "finding a bad guy".

Discernment Counseling involves the couple meeting together at moments but the most important work occurs in the one-to-one conversations. We do this because you are starting out in different places. I will respect your reasons for divorce while discussing circumstances to be open to restoring the marriage to health. Even if this relationship ends, this process is useful for future relationships as we tend to take "our part" to all of our intimate relationships.
Please see the video below of Discernment Counseling originator and researcher, Bill Doherty, discussing Discernment Counseling.
Discernment Counseling Outline

Important Details About Discernment Counseling

Number of Sessions: A maximum of five counseling sessions. 
Discernment Counseling is not suited for: 
  • When one spouse has already made a final decision to divorce
  • When one spouse is coercing the other to participate
  • When there is danger of domestic violence
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If you would like to discuss entering Discernment Counseling with me, email me at referrals@jamesmccrackenpsychotherapy.com today.  Don't let ambivalence take over your relationship. 
​Let me help you find clarity and a sense of direction.
James McCracken, LCSW Durham Couples Therapy
James McCracken is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker,  Certified Emotionally Focused Therapy Practitioner and Supervisor, and Certified Discernment Counselor dedicated to improving the mental health and emotional well being of North Carolina residents.  He and his associates provide couple therapy, marriage counseling, premarital counseling, sex therapy, discernment counseling, divorce counseling, co-parenting counseling, family therapy, individual psychotherapy, grief & loss counseling, LCSW Supervision, and EFT supervision services in his Durham, NC office and online.  He and his associates are conveniently located to Carrboro, Chapel Hill, Raleigh, Hillsborough, Morrisville, Apex, and Cary for in-office visits, and are available online for all residents of North Carolina. ​If you would like to learn more about this practice directly, receive a free brief consult, or set up an appointment, please call
919-228-9729 ​
​or email referrals@jamesmccrackenpsychotherapy.com

Racial Equality
We welcome and celebrate diversity in this practice and stand against oppression and social injustice including discrimination based on any aspect of identity including: national origin, religion, racism and white supremacy, patriarchy & sexism, ageism, gender conformism & transphobia, and heteronormativity & homophobia.  We work with adolescent and adult clients from diverse racial, ethnic, cultural, socioeconomic and religious backgrounds, and are allied and affirmative providers to LGBQ-TGNC-I+ persons, and are sex-positive, body-positive, and kink-friendly providers.
James A McCracken is listed at AllTherapist.com
verified by Psychology Today
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LGBTQIA affirmative
James McCracken, LCSW & Associates, PLLC.  All Rights Reserved
3326 Durham Chapel Hill Blvd., B-130, Durham, NC 27707

referrals@jamesmccrackenpsychotherapy.com | 919-228-9729
  • Home
  • Services
    • Couples Therapy | Marriage Counseling
    • Family Therapy
    • Individual Psychotherapy
    • Supervision/Consultation >
      • EFT Supervision
      • Level Up Group for EFT Supervisors
      • EFT Supervision of Supervision
      • Clinical Social Work Supervision
    • Online Therapy
  • Areas of Practice
    • Emotionally Focused Therapy
    • Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy
    • Discernment Counseling
    • Couple and Marital Distress
    • Premarital Assessment & Counseling
    • Affair Recovery
    • Divorce Recovery
    • Family Conflict between Parents and Adult Children
  • About
    • About James
    • Therapy Approach
    • Philosophy of Supervision
    • Associate Practitioners
    • Practice Policies, Fee, & Insurance
    • FAQ
  • Contact
  • Client Resources
    • Client Portal
    • Additional Helpful Resources
    • Consent for Release of Information