Relationship / Marriage Issues

I provide professional, caring, and confidential therapy for couples and individuals seeking to address relationship concerns. Repressed or ignored sexual issues and concerns can resurface within relationships. Intimacy and desire discrepancies can become a source of frustration, division, alienation, and self-judgement. How we accept, adapt, and feel comfortable in our sexual energy can change at various points in our lives. I help clients navigate such unexpected and confusing times.

I am a trained couples and family therapist who specializes in sex therapy. I work with issues like infidelity, building conflict and communication skills, relational trauma, non-monogamy, sexual desire discrepancy, and exploring sexuality.

As a licensed marriage and family therapist with more than twenty years of experience working with couples, I bring significant expertise and personal experience to relationship therapy. I have helped clients from all walks of life find greater intimacy, connectedness, and trust in their couples.



Our experience in couples counseling includes but is not limited to: infidelity, life changes (big or small), family building conversations, infertility, adoption, trust, financial planning, premarital counseling, blended families, and parenting styles. We are LGBTQIA+ affirming. We welcome all varieties of relationships, traditional and non-traditional. 

 Each therapist is a Level 1 Gottman Therapy Provider. We believe in using holistic assessments that then inform the therapeutic framewo

Relationship issues, along with life transitions, are one of the main issues that bring people into therapy with me. I have extensive training and experience in attachment and relationship trauma and ruptures. From an attachment-focused and trauma-informed lens, we look at relationship patterns in your life to understand how and where you may have learned unhelpful beliefs and patterns in relationships, and help you to change how you relate to yourself and others.

With the stress and pace of modern life, cultivating and maintaining a healthy relationship takes intentional work on both sides. Dennis Smith, CPC-I, at Adonai Counseling & Consulting, PLLC, in Las Vegas, Nevada, specializes in relationship counseling. Known for his ability to stay neutral, Dennis provides marriage counseling, couples counseling, and friendship counseling. Call the office or book an appointment online to get started. In-person and telehealth appointments are available.

Relationship and marriage issues are emotionally charged. It is hard to separate what are each person’s own issues from the problems between the individuals. It is easy to be activated by accusations and behaviors of the other person. This makes it hard to know where to start, or even what to believe. Whether your relationship is just growing stale or is co-dependent or even abusive, it is important for you to focus on your own healing and growth. I will help you find your footing, so you have a place to stand in strength and confidence. This will allow you to then work on your relationship issues without having your personal stuff get in the way.

I have extensive work with all types of relationship dynamics.

Understanding one’s wants and needs in relationships; exploring patterns of interaction, addressing concerns, and strengthening satisfaction in relationships, dating and marriage

I use Emotionally Focused Therapy, Gottman principles, and a dialectical way of looking at life to provide a safe space for a dyad (group of two) to connect with each other- to be seen and be heard. This dyad may be two individuals in a romantic relationship or long term partnership. It can also be two people living with each other, as roommates or family, or two people that have a close relationship with each other, such as friends.

The majority of my practice is couples work. I am unique, in that I tell my clients that the *relationship* is not my client- THEY are. My goal is for each person that I work with to be happy and healthy. If you can do that together? I have tools and techniques that will help you get there. Let's do it. If you can't? Then the primary goal of our work should be creating a path forward towards health and happiness for you both, even if that means the relationship evolves or ends.

Marriage and relationships are hard, and we often do not enter them knowing how to do conflict, comunication, or intimacy well. Investing in your marriage pays dividends in many areas of life as skills that we develop in therapy apply to all relationships, including your understanding of yourself. The Gottman Method is a proven and evidence-based treatment that incorporates thorough assessment and targeted interventions to ensure that your relationship is built upon a solid foundation.

During individual therapy, clients often wish to discuss how they can strengthen their premarital or marital relationships. I assist clients with exploring communication, forgiveness, and conflict resolution and anger management techniques. I help clients to explore solo self care AND partnered relationship-building activities. Attention is given to interdependence within a healthy significant relationship.

Past harm/trauma can cause us to operate off of relationship templates we learned from those who harmed us. We can get stuck in these patterns, often without understanding why. Other times, recent trauma can turn the relational equilibrium upside down. When one partner is struggling with the effects of PTSD, the other may have trouble adjusting or knowing how to respond. Couples therapy can help in building a new equilibrium with a stronger foundation of awareness, affection, and communication.

Specialties Include: Premarital counseling, discontent, struggles with effective fighting or communication, past trauma triggering conflict, racial & gender issues impacting communication & conflict, infidelity/affairs, empty nesters, blending family, miscarriage & infertility, parenting Certifications: MA in Marriage and Family Therapy Gottman Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work Leader Prepare/Enrich Premarital counselor

Trained to provide evidence-based couples therapy in a safe and non-judgmental environment.

Counselors can help you become better communicators, develop strong relationship skills, and improve your family’s happiness. Keep in mind that the average couple waits 6 years before seeking therapy. This is a lot of time to let problems fester; at this point, troubled relationships are difficult to save. Instead, it's best to acknowledge problems early and seek therapy as soon as possible. Problems with relationships are not limited to romantic ones, even though that’s the most popular reason

I use interpersonal effectiveness skills to facilitate improvements in communication skills as well as distress tolerance skills to help you stay grounded through conflict. I incorporate psychodynamic/attachment theory to help you gain insight into the deeper patterns manifesting in your intimate relationships. I also have experience working with the struggles that come alongside infidelity whether you experienced betrayal or broke your relationship agreements.

My work as a therapist is attachment based and experiential. We explore attachments with the belief that our past shapes our present. We are looking to better understand how our past experiences contribute to our core beliefs of who we are today and how that impacts the way we connect with our partners. In other words, we are digging fucking deep. I help you explore attachment wounds to better understand what the fuck is going wrong and whats keeping you from hearing each other and feeling safe.